Foundry and Forge Shop Products PPI: Budget Scenarios and Their Limits
Foundry and Forge Shop Products, up about 3.7% from a year ago. This series covers foundry and forge shop products. It is broader than iron and steel castings and must not be presented as a casting-only production or cost measure.
The BLS Foundry and Forge Shop Products Producer Price Index (WPU1015) reads 296.49 index (1982=100) for Aug 2026, up about 3.7% from a year ago. The reference period identifies the observation; a later website refresh does not turn it into a daily price. This is a producer price index, not a delivered quote in dollars per unit.
This series covers foundry and forge shop products. It is broader than iron and steel castings and must not be presented as a casting-only production or cost measure.
A scenario is a planning assumption
A hypothetical 5% rise from the current index would put it at 311.31; a hypothetical 5% fall would put it at 281.66. These are arithmetic scenarios, not source forecasts, probability bands or predictions of how far the market can move.
A difference between this PPI's growth rate and a steel mill PPI's growth rate does not isolate labor, energy, foundry margins or a fabrication premium. Their product baskets differ, and neither is a supplier's cost ledger.
Make the scenario relevant to the contract
Match alloy, process, weight, tooling, machining allowance and acceptance requirements to the part being quoted. The observed product price includes more than metal input cost; a supplier's conversion cost needs its own evidence.
Separate purchases that reprice during the planning period from fixed-price commitments. Record the portion of spend covered by the benchmark, the assumed pass-through, contract reset dates and the delivery exposure. Review the scenario when a new observation arrives; do not move a forecast's target date merely because the page rebuilt.
Source and update notes
The source is BLS series WPU1015, also published by FRED at https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/WPU1015. The linked data page provides the current observation and available history. A successful refresh changes readings only when the source returns changed data. Missing or failed observations must retain their original periods and be reported as unavailable or delayed.