The Labor Department reports on U.S. producer price inflation in July. The report, which measures price changes before they reach consumers, will be released Friday at 8:30 a.m. Eastern. SMALLER INCREASE: Economists forecast that the producer price index rose just 0.1 percent in July from the previous month, according to a survey by FactSet. That would be lower than July's 0.4 percent increase, which was driven by higher gas prices. In the 12 months ending in June, producer prices rose 1.9 percent, roughly in line with the Federal Reserve's inflation target. TAME INFLATION: Higher food and gas costs have pushed up ... (full story)