The Consumer Price Index is used to calculate inflation, or the change in price of a basket of goods and services, as it impacts consumers; whereas, the Producer Price Index measures changes in selling prices, thereby expressing price changes from the perspective of the seller who produces a particular commodity.
A slide presentation updated with August 2015 data shows the Midwest inflation rate increased from July to August in urban metros and decreased in non-metro areas.
The Producer Price Index data shows that prices in the United States have increased from August 2014 to August 2015 for aircraft (0.6 percent) and sorghum (11.1 percent). During that same time period, the index decreased for crude petroleum (57.4 percent), natural gas (28.6 percent), slaughter livestock (8.2 percent), and wheat (17.1 percent).
