CNN  —  Wholesale inflation picked up in April to its highest rate in a year as price hikes continue to weigh on American businesses, hamstringing the Federal Reserve’s plans to cut interest rates. The Producer Price Index, which measures the change in prices that manufacturers pay to suppliers, was 2.2% for the 12 months ended in April, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Tuesday. The increase from the downwardly revised 1.8% annual gain in March was in line with economists’ expectations. On a monthly basis, prices rose 0.5%, a faster pace than March’s 0.1% loss. PPI captures average price shifts before they reach consumers and serves as a potential bellwether for retail-level inflation in the months ahead. The latest wholesale data is landing a day before an even more critical read on the state of inflation in the US: The Consumer Price Index for April will be released Wednesday morning.