Wholesale prices in the U.S. climbed in December for the first time in three months to cap the smallest annual increase in five years, showing companies face little pressure to charge more. The 0.4 percent increase in the producer-price index matched the median estimate of 79 economists surveyed by Bloomberg and followed a 0.1 percent drop in November, a Labor Department report showed today in Washington. The so-called core measure, which excludes food and energy, climbed more than forecast, led by the biggest surge in tobacco costs since 2007. The 1.2 advance for the calendar year was the smallest since 2008, when ... (full story)