Today, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) released the change in the costs faced by producers purchasing transportation services and industries producing them, from March 2025 to March 2026, as measured by the Producer Price Index (PPI). The PPI measures inflation from the perspective of costs to industry or producers of products.

Transportation equipment PPI indicate the changes in transportation equipment prices faced by transportation providers, and any increase, increases providers costs. The PPI shows that prices for freight transportation and equipment increase 2.3% in March 2026 from March 2025. 

Increases in transportation services PPI indicate increases in production costs faced by industries purchasing the services. From March 2025 to March 2026, the transportation services PPI changed, by mode, as compared to all transportation and non-transportation services:

• Air: +2.6%
• Rail: +0.3%
• Truck: +6.2%
• Water: +1.5%
• Arrangement of freight and cargo: -0.9%
• All services (transportation and non-transportation): +2.9

Transportation contributed 14.6% to the overall increase in costs faced by producers for transportation and non-transportation services.

For additional information and for interactive charts on transportation's role in the economy and changes (trends) over time, please visit BTS’ Transportation Economic Trends.