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News Release Information

24-308-PHI
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:

Consumer Price Index, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area – January 2024

Area prices were up 0.5 percent over the past 2 months, up 3.6 percent from a year ago.

Prices in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), increased 0.5 percent over the 2 months ending in January, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that the January increase was due in large part to higher prices for shelter and medical care. For the same period, the all items less food and energy index and the food index rose, up 0.7 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively. Tempering the index’s overall increase was the energy index, down 3.1 percent. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U index advanced 3.6 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) The all items less food and energy index was mostly responsible for the total increase as it rose 4.6 percent. Food prices were up 2.0 percent over the year; in contrast, energy prices declined 5.5 percent, partially offsetting increases elsewhere. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices advanced 0.8 percent for the 2-month period ending in January. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home rose 0.9 percent, and prices for food away from home were up 0.7 percent for the same period. Within the food at home index, prices increased for fruits and vegetables (+4.1 percent); nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials (+5.8 percent); and dairy and related products (+1.7 percent). Slightly offsetting the rise in prices for the grocery index was a decrease in prices for other food at home (-1.5 percent). Other declines in the grocery categories included prices for cereals and bakery products (-1.1 percent); and prices for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (-0.3 percent).

Over the year, food prices increased 2.0 percent with prices for food away from home up 4.7 percent. For the same period, prices for food at home rose 0.3 percent— the smallest 12-month percent increase since July 2021. For the grocery index, rising prices in other food at home (+3.5 percent); fruits and vegetables (+2.7 percent); and nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials (+3.2 percent) contributed to the advance. The increase in grocery prices was moderated by price drops in the meats, poultry, fish, and eggs index, down 4.9 percent, the largest over-the-year decline since the index began in 2018. Contributing to the tempering as well were the cereals and bakery products index (-1.6 percent) and the dairy and related products index (-1.2 percent).

Energy

The energy index fell 3.1 percent for the two months ending in January. The decrease was mainly due to lower prices for gasoline (-6.4 percent). Prices for electricity fell 0.7 percent, while prices for natural gas service increased 3.3 percent for the same period.

Energy prices declined 5.5 percent over the year, largely due to lower prices for gasoline (-7.2 percent). The utility (piped) service index decreased 19.3 percent—during the past year, 12-month percentage declines have ranged from 27.1 percent to 11.2 percent. Prices paid for electricity rose 2.8 percent, slightly moderating the energy index decline.

All items less food and energy

In the latest 2-month period, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 0.7 percent. The overall index rise was led by higher prices for shelter (+0.6 percent), medical care (+2.9 percent—the largest increase since March 2022), and other goods and services (+3.0 percent). Within the shelter index, the owners’ equivalent rent of residences index increased (+0.6 percent) as did rent of primary residence (+ 0.7 percent); but declining prices for lodging away from home softened the rise in the shelter index. Partially offsetting the all items less food and energy index were declines in prices for new and used motor vehicles, down 1.3 percent, led by used cars and trucks (-3.9 percent). Other declining prices included prices for apparel, down 3.0 percent.

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy increased 4.6 percent. Components contributing to the January rise included shelter (5.2 percent) and medical care (5.8 percent—the first increase since last January). In the shelter index, owners’ equivalent rent of residences was up 6.1 percent and the index for rent of primary residence advanced 2.9 percent. Other increases in the overall index included other goods and services (+6.6 percent); tuition, other school fees, and childcare (+5.3 percent); household furnishing and operations (+3.2 percent); and recreation (+2.3 percent). The only declines were the apparel index (-0.5 percent); and used cars and trucks, down 3.3 percent—the smallest decline since November 2022.

Table A. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV, CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted
Month 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
2-month 12-month 2-month 12-month 2-month 12-month 2-month 12-month 2-month 12-month

January

0.5 1.6 0.7 1.5 0.9 6.0 -0.3 4.4 0.5 3.6

March

-0.4 0.4 0.7 2.6 1.9 7.3 1.3 3.7

May

0.1 -0.1 1.3 3.8 1.5 7.5 0.9 3.1

July

0.6 0.8 1.2 4.4 1.1 7.5 -0.1 1.8

September

0.6 1.2 0.7 4.5 -0.2 6.5 1.3 3.3

November

0.0 1.4 1.2 5.8 0.3 5.6 -0.3 2.8

The March 2024 Consumer Price Index for the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area is scheduled to be released on April 10, 2024. .


Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index for Washington-Arlington-Alexandria is published bi-monthly. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measure of 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, 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 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV, Core Based Statistical Area includes the District of Columbia; the counties of Calvert, Charles, Frederick, Montgomery, and Prince George’s in Maryland; the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Fredericksburg, Manassas, and Manassas Park and the counties of Arlington, Clarke, Culpeper, Fairfax, Fauquier, Loudoun, Prince William, Rappahannock, Spotsylvania, Stafford, and Warren in Virginia; and the county of Jefferson in West Virginia.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV, (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted) (not seasonally adjusted)
Expenditure category Indexes Percent change from
Historical
data
Nov.
2023
Dec.
2023
Jan.
2024
Jan.
2023
Nov.
2023
Dec.
2023

All items

308.419   309.961 3.6 0.5  

Food and beverages

303.613   305.996 1.9 0.8  

Food

312.634   315.228 2.0 0.8  

Food at home

290.524 292.077 293.032 0.3 0.9 0.3

Cereals and bakery products

387.096 379.908 382.719 -1.6 -1.1 0.7

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

310.467 308.360 309.491 -4.9 -0.3 0.4

Dairy and related products

287.123 290.354 292.009 -1.2 1.7 0.6

Fruits and vegetables

294.803 301.947 306.901 2.7 4.1 1.6

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

247.736 259.859 262.073 3.2 5.8 0.9

Other food at home

250.229 248.967 246.399 3.5 -1.5 -1.0

Food away from home

343.763   346.199 4.7 0.7  

Alcoholic beverages

219.620   219.942 1.1 0.1  

Housing

322.264   324.023 4.4 0.5  

Shelter

384.062 384.565 386.317 5.2 0.6 0.5

Rent of primary residence

412.800 414.254 415.673 2.9 0.7 0.3

Owners' equivalent rent of residences(2)

396.573 397.212 399.138 6.1 0.6 0.5

Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(2)

396.573 397.212 399.138 6.1 0.6 0.5

Fuels and utilities

282.260   282.437 -1.8 0.1  

Household energy

221.277 219.381 221.222 -3.9 0.0 0.8

Energy services

225.611 223.562 226.100 -3.3 0.2 1.1

Electricity

251.935 251.837 250.127 2.8 -0.7 -0.7

Utility (piped) gas service

158.316 152.189 163.484 -19.3 3.3 7.4

Household furnishings and operations

131.366   132.114 3.2 0.6  

Apparel

162.797   157.929 -0.5 -3.0  

Transportation

268.219   265.530 3.4 -1.0  

Private transportation

280.054   277.586 3.6 -0.9  

New and used motor vehicles(3)

127.675   126.032 1.7 -1.3  

New vehicles(1)

229.498   229.099 0.0 -0.2  

Used cars and trucks(1)

405.377   389.743 -3.3 -3.9  

Motor fuel

316.269 302.368 295.940 -7.3 -6.4 -2.1

Gasoline (all types)

311.650 297.967 291.629 -7.2 -6.4 -2.1

Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)

303.418 289.700 283.288 -7.7 -6.6 -2.2

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

325.363 313.620 307.900 -4.6 -5.4 -1.8

Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)

341.391 329.559 324.220 -4.1 -5.0 -1.6

Medical care

519.811   534.928 5.8 2.9  

Recreation(3)

127.748   128.950 2.3 0.9  

Education and communication(3)

166.430   166.418 1.8 0.0  

Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)

1,669.910   1,669.910 5.3 0.0  

Other goods and services

507.221   522.206 6.6 3.0  

Commodity and service group

Commodities

213.403   212.623 0.6 -0.4  

Commodities less food and beverages

169.037   167.081 -0.4 -1.2  

Nondurables less food and beverages

221.567   218.136 1.3 -1.5  

Durables

120.026   119.120 -2.0 -0.8  

Services

393.416   397.245 5.3 1.0  

Special aggregate indexes

All items less shelter

277.087   278.330 2.7 0.4  

All items less medical care

298.545   299.471 3.4 0.3  

Commodities less food

171.148   169.257 -0.3 -1.1  

Nondurables

261.430   260.914 1.6 -0.2  

Nondurables less food

220.856   217.695 1.3 -1.4  

Services less rent of shelter(2)

415.802   422.033 5.5 1.5  

Services less medical care services

381.282   384.013 5.4 0.7  

Energy

269.218 262.378 260.849 -5.5 -3.1 -0.6

All items less energy

315.596   317.800 4.2 0.7  

All items less food and energy

317.394   319.534 4.6 0.7  

Footnotes
(1) Indexes on a November 1977=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) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.

 

Last Modified Date: Tuesday, February 13, 2024