Prices in the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), advanced 1.4 percent for the two months ending in January 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Michael Hirniak noted that a 1.5-percent increase in the index for all items less food and energy accounted for most of the rise, but higher prices for food also contributed. In contrast, the energy index declined during the period. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U increased 7.9 percent. The index for all items less food and energy increased 7.0 percent over the year. Energy prices jumped 24.9 percent, while food prices advanced 7.3 percent. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

Food

Food prices rose 2.4 percent for the two months ending in January. The index for food away from home advanced 3.1 percent, while the index for food at home increased 1.9 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices rose 7.3 percent. Prices for food away from home (which includes restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) increased 9.8 percent. Prices for food at home increased 5.5 percent over the year, mainly due to an increase in prices for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs.

Energy

The energy index declined 3.2 percent for the two months ending in January. The decrease was mainly due to lower prices for gasoline (-6.3 percent), as prices for electricity were unchanged over the two-month period.

Energy prices jumped 24.9 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (+38.4 percent). Prices paid for electricity increased 2.4 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.5 percent in the latest two-month period. Higher prices for medical care (+6.5 percent), shelter (+0.5 percent) and used cars and trucks (+6.0 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for tuition, other school fees and childcare (-2.1 percent) and recreation (-0.5 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 7.0 percent. Components contributing to the increase included owners’ equivalent rent of residences (+5.1 percent), medical care (+12.1 percent) and used cars and trucks (+43.4 percent).

The March 2022 Consumer Price Index for the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood area is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, April 12, 2022.

Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures the average change in prices over time in a fixed market basket of goods and services. The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes CPIs for two population groups: (1) a CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) which covers approximately 93 percent of the total U.S. population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers approximately 29 percent of the total U.S. population. The CPI-U includes, in addition to wage earners and clerical workers, groups such as professional, managerial, and technical workers, the self-employed, short-term workers, the unemployed, and retirees and others not in the labor force.

The CPI is based on prices of food, clothing, shelter, and fuels, transportation fares, charges for doctors' and dentists' services, drugs, and the other goods and services that people buy for day-to-day living. Each month, prices are collected in 75 urban areas across the country from about 6,000 housing units and approximately 22,000 retail establishments—department stores, supermarkets, hospitals, filling stations, and other types of stores and service establishments. All taxes directly associated with the purchase and use of items are included in the index.

The index measures price changes from a designated reference date. For most of the CPI-U the reference base is 1982-84 equals 100. An increase of 7 percent from the reference base, for example, is shown as 107.000.  Alternatively, that relationship can also be expressed as the price of a base period market basket of goods and services rising from $100 to $107. For further details see the CPI home page on the internet at www.bls.gov/cpi and the CPI section of the BLS Handbook of Methods available on the internet at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cpi/.

In calculating the index, price changes for the various items in each location are averaged together with weights that represent their importance in the spending of the appropriate population group. Local data are then combined to obtain a U.S. city average. Because the sample size of a local area is smaller, the local area index is subject to substantially more sampling and other measurement error than the national index. In addition, local indexes are not adjusted for seasonal influences. As a result, local area indexes show greater volatility than the national index, although their long-term trends are quite similar. NOTE: Area indexes do not measure differences in the level of prices between cities; they only measure the average change in prices for each area since the base period.

The Denver-Aurora-Lakewood metropolitan area is comprised of Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Clear Creek, Denver, Douglas, Elbert, Gilpin, Jefferson, and Park counties in Colorado.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods,
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from -
	Nov. 2021	Dec. 2021	Jan. 2022	Jan. 2021	Nov. 2021	Dec. 2021
All items	289.621	-	293.580	7.9	1.4	-
All items (1967 = 100)	965.766	-	978.967
Food and beverages	261.791	-	267.981	7.0	2.4	-
Food	267.397	-	273.880	7.3	2.4	-
Food at home	245.520	246.100	250.248	5.5	1.9	1.7
Cereals and bakery products	286.173	-	293.027	3.7	2.4	-
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs	258.948	-	262.480	10.9	1.4	-
Dairy and related products	203.107	-	214.535	3.4	5.6	-
Fruits and vegetables	275.950	-	280.944	0.0	1.8	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)	166.294	-	168.464	2.3	1.3	-
Other food at home	222.497	-	225.008	6.9	1.1	-
Food away from home	296.955	-	306.171	9.8	3.1	-
Alcoholic beverages	212.057	-	215.616	2.9	1.7	-
Housing	287.018	-	288.832	5.1	0.6	-
Shelter	331.456	334.454	333.148	5.2	0.5	-0.4
Rent of primary residence	341.665	343.040	344.325	5.0	0.8	0.4
Owners' equivalent rent of residences(2)	328.566	329.801	329.327	5.1	0.2	-0.1
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(2)	328.566	329.801	329.327	5.1	0.2	-0.1
Fuels and utilities	250.529	-	253.837	6.8	1.3	-
Household energy	165.143	166.447	167.370	8.4	1.3	0.6
Energy services	163.564	164.642	165.412	8.3	1.1	0.5
Electricity	161.534	161.534	161.534	2.4	0.0	0.0
Utility (piped) gas service	-	-	-	-	-	-
Household furnishings and operations	132.383	-	133.775	3.8	1.1	-
Apparel	106.683	-	111.758	9.7	4.8	-
Transportation	304.061	-	307.553	21.1	1.1	-
Private transportation	304.598	-	308.040	21.0	1.1	-
New and used motor vehicles(3)	-	-	-	-	-	-
New vehicles(1)	-	-	-	-	-	-
Used cars and trucks(1)	391.210	-	414.571	43.4	6.0	-
Motor fuel	290.382	278.511	272.392	38.5	-6.2	-2.2
Gasoline (all types)	288.705	276.780	270.508	38.4	-6.3	-2.3
Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)	281.102	268.931	262.659	39.7	-6.6	-2.3
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)	283.127	272.688	267.037	35.3	-5.7	-2.1
Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)	311.974	301.353	295.345	32.8	-5.3	-2.0
Motor vehicle insurance(1)	3,196.227	-	-	-	-	-
Medical care	664.571	-	707.530	12.1	6.5	-
Recreation(3)	168.570	-	167.654	6.0	-0.5	-
Education and communication(3)	125.888	-	124.293	-2.2	-1.3	-
Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)	1,109.925	-	1,087.051	-1.3	-2.1	-
Other goods and services	398.302	-	419.034	8.6	5.2	-
Commodity and service group
Commodities	194.842	-	199.568	12.7	2.4	-
Commodities less food and beverages	160.349	-	164.282	16.2	2.5	-
Nondurables less food and beverages	192.402	-	195.632	16.6	1.7	-
Durables	127.131	-	131.392	15.9	3.4	-
Services	372.657	-	375.548	5.3	0.8	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less shelter	269.491	-	274.495	9.4	1.9	-
All items less medical care	272.562	-	275.189	7.6	1.0	-
Commodities less food	162.543	-	166.477	15.6	2.4	-
Nondurables	227.585	-	232.203	11.3	2.0	-
Nondurables less food	193.639	-	196.857	15.4	1.7	-
Services less rent of shelter(2)	427.226	-	431.982	5.5	1.1	-
Services less medical care services	347.618	-	349.248	4.9	0.5	-
Energy	222.487	217.512	215.427	24.9	-3.2	-1.0
All items less energy	297.484	-	302.364	7.0	1.6	-
All items less food and energy	303.878	-	308.543	7.0	1.5	-
(1) Indexes on a January 1978=100 base. (2) Indexes on a November 1982=100 base. (3) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (5) Index on a December 1993=100 base.
- Data not available.