Are Rising Gas Prices Driving The Fed Toward More Rate Hikes?

Higher gasoline prices pushed U.S. producer prices up in September, fueling worry that there is still a long way to go before inflation is tamed. Indeed, with the current degree of oil price volatility, the taming has suddenly become quite questionable. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported this week that producer price inflation for September had gone up by 2.2% on an annual basis and 0.5% on a monthly basis. The rise in prices was higher than expected. The culprit behind the rise: fuel prices. Gasoline prices alone added 5.4% in the…