Here's what new data from the producer price index says about where inflation is headed, according to economists.

A measure of wholesale prices rose in July, coming in higher than Wall Street estimates, after remaining unchanged in June. The producer price index, which is a gauge of prices that producers get for their goods and services in the open market,

The cost of wholesale goods and services — where rising inflation tends to show up first — in July posted the biggest increase in three years, possibly heralding a sizable acceleration in price increases tied to higher U.