Morning Bid: Oil smudges inflation view, Tesla in slow lane

Creeping oil prices are complicating the inflation picture again, with producer inputs and retail sales updates next on the U.S. economy’s dashboard on Thursday – while Tesla drifts further from the megacap stock vanguard. As thoughts of U.S. recession recede further, oil prices climbed again on Thursday after data showed U.S. gasoline stocks fell for the sixth straight week to three-month lows and crude stockpiles dropped unexpectedly. Rising fuel prices were partly responsible for stickier consumer price readings for February earlier this week and the producer price report for last month is due out later – important for many economists as it contains key components in the Federal Reserve’s favored PCE inflation gauge.