U.S. producer prices rose faster than expected in January, with price increases for cars, trucks, electricity and drugs leading the way The producer price index increased 0.3% in January, while core prices (which exclude food and energy) rose 0.4%, the biggest gain in a year, the Labor Department said Friday. Economists were expecting 0.2% gains in both the headline PPI and in the core PPI, according to a survey conducted by MarketWatch. The PPI increased a revised 0.6% in December and core prices rose 0.1%. In January, for once, energy prices had little to do with movement in the PPI. Overall, energy prices were unchanged. Residential electric power prices rose a record 3%, but were offset by a 3.5% drop in wholesale gasoline prices In the past year, the PPI has risen 5.7%, while core prices are up 1.5% Auto prices rose 1.1% and truck prices gained 0.7%, after dropping in November and December. Crude food prices rose 0.5%, with rice and cooking oils leading the way. Jewelry prices soared 2.7%, likely the result of higher prices for precious metals, especially gold. Drug prices rose 0.6% The Federal Reserve has warned that further increases in short-term rates may be needed to quell inflationary pressures. However, the PPI is not the main inflation gauge that Fed officials watch; they prefer to watch consumer prices as measured by the Commerce Department's price index for personal consumption expenditures The consumer price index will be released next Wednesday. In the January PPI, moderate price pressures were seen further back in the production pipeline