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News Release Information

24-34-CHI
Thursday, January 11, 2024

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (312) 353-1138

Consumer Price Index, Detroit-Warren-Dearborn area – December 2023

Detroit area CPI unchanged over the past two months, up 4.5 percent from a year ago

The Detroit-Warren-Dearborn area Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), was unchanged for the two months ending in December 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Jason Palmer noted that the food index declined 0.1 percent and the energy index fell 5.4 percent from October to December. The all items less food and energy index rose 0.4 percent over the past two months largely due to gains in the owners’ equivalent rent of residences, recreation, and new and used motor vehicles indexes. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U advanced 4.5 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) The index for all items less food and energy rose 5.5 percent and food prices advanced 1.5 percent over the year. Energy prices declined 0.6 percent, largely the result of a decrease in the price of utility (piped) gas service. (See table 1.)


Food

Food prices fell 0.1 percent for the two months ending in December. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home (groceries) decreased 0.4 percent.

Over the year, food prices rose 1.5 percent. Prices for food at home advanced 0.9 percent as four of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased over the year. Categories increasing included meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (+2.8 percent), cereals and bakery products (+2.4 percent), and fruits and vegetables (+1.1 percent). The index for other food at home (includes sugar, sweets, fats, and oils, for example) fell 0.6 percent.

Energy

The energy index decreased 5.4 percent for the two months ending in December. The decrease was mainly due to lower prices for gasoline (-12.2 percent). Prices for utility (piped) gas service advanced 0.6 percent, while prices for electricity fell 0.3 percent for the same period.

Energy prices declined 0.6 percent over the year, largely due to lower prices for utility (piped) gas service (-12.9 percent). Prices paid for electricity increased 12.2 percent, while prices for gasoline decreased 1.7 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.4 percent in the latest two-month period. Higher prices for owners’ equivalent rent of residences (+0.9 percent), recreation (+2.8 percent), and new and used motor vehicles (+3.1 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for lodging away from home, apparel (-4.4 percent) and household furnishings and operations (-1.9 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 5.5 percent. Components contributing to the increase included shelter (+8.0 percent), new and used motor vehicles (+ 7.0 percent), and education and communication (+3.5 percent). Partly offsetting the increases was a price decrease in apparel (-6.6 percent).

Table A. Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI, CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted
Month20192020202120222023
2-month12-month2-month12-month2-month12-month2-month12-month2-month12-month

February

0.41.20.52.60.60.81.17.51.97.0

April

0.61.0-2.7-0.81.75.42.58.32.16.6

June

0.40.11.70.51.75.43.09.71.14.7

August

0.61.41.91.80.53.9-0.58.60.65.9

October

1.02.4-0.30.51.25.51.18.5-1.33.4

December

-0.62.5-0.30.71.17.0-1.06.20.04.5

The February 2024 Consumer Price Index for the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn area is scheduled to be released on March 12, 2024.


Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index for Detroit 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 population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers 29 percent of the total 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 87 urban areas across the country from about 4,000 housing units and approximately 26,000 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 (1982-84) that equals 100.0. An increase of 16.5 percent, for example, is shown as 116.5. This change can also be expressed in dollars as follows: the price of a base period "market basket" of goods and services in the CPI has risen from $10 in 1982-84 to $11.65. For further details see the CPI home page on the Internet at www.bls.gov/cpi and the BLS Handbook of Methods, Chapter 17, The Consumer Price Index, available on the internet at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/homch17_a.htm.

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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI, Core Based Statistical Area consolidated area covered in this release is comprised of Lapeer, Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, St. Clair, and Wayne Counties in Michigan.

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
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Item and Group

IndexesPercent change from-
Oct.
2023
Nov.
2023
Dec.
2023
Dec.
2022
Oct.
2023
Nov.
2023

Expenditure category

All items

283.874-283.7574.50.0-

All items (1967=100)

843.791-843.443---

Food and beverages

286.134-285.6891.9-0.2-

Food

287.129-286.8241.5-0.1-

Food at home

273.469271.107272.2540.9-0.40.4

Cereals and bakery products

352.288348.206350.4272.4-0.50.6

Meats, poultry, fish and eggs

290.384280.086289.1762.8-0.43.2

Dairy and related products

209.420210.555207.241-0.9-1.0-1.6

Fruits and vegetables

270.542269.427274.8771.11.62.0

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

261.977263.673254.5750.7-2.8-3.5

Other food at home

256.035255.888254.701-0.6-0.5-0.5

Food away from home

308.664-----

Alcoholic beverages

269.180-----

Housing

275.690-275.1266.4-0.2-

Shelter

317.249317.910317.2908.00.0-0.2

Rent of primary residence(2)

327.736326.971330.5506.00.91.1

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)(3)

310.780311.447313.6317.40.90.7

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)(3)

310.780311.447313.6317.40.90.7

Fuels and utilities

322.418-322.4653.00.0-

Household energy

250.870246.096250.8950.60.02.0

Energy services(2)

252.673247.817252.8360.80.12.0

Electricity(2)

293.128282.349292.37112.2-0.33.5

Utility (piped) gas service(2)

191.817193.417192.914-12.90.6-0.3

Household furnishings and operations

142.372-139.652-0.4-1.9-

Apparel

101.710-97.216-6.6-4.4-

Transportation

320.433-320.1048.7-0.1-

Private transportation

328.810-329.6569.00.3-

New and used motor vehicles(4)

145.297-149.8737.03.1-

New vehicles(1)

258.658-256.6162.3-0.8-

Used cars and trucks(1)

386.147-389.048-1.20.8-

Motor fuel

310.078296.198272.612-2.1-12.1-8.0

Gasoline (all types)

307.859293.943270.186-1.7-12.2-8.1

Gasoline, unleaded regular(5)

308.745294.426269.969-1.9-12.6-8.3

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(5)(6)

378.691363.986341.491-0.3-9.8-6.2

Gasoline, unleaded premium(5)

330.454319.543300.904-0.3-8.9-5.8

Medical care

--492.464---

Recreation(4)

122.604-126.0040.72.8-

Education and communication(4)

158.836-159.6133.50.5-

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)

1,539.784-1,534.2676.8-0.4-

Other goods and services

528.358-525.0256.3-0.6-

Commodity and service group

All items

283.874-283.7574.50.0-

Commodities

211.785-207.755-0.1-1.9-

Commodities less food and beverages

174.601-168.924-1.6-3.3-

Nondurables less food and beverages

201.378-192.002-3.8-4.7-

Durables

138.157-135.9371.0-1.6-

Services

357.165-361.2567.51.1-

Special aggregate indexes

All items less medical care

275.613-275.4934.80.0-

All items less shelter

274.485-274.3042.9-0.1-

Commodities less food

178.046-172.463-1.2-3.1-

Nondurables

242.987-238.111-0.5-2.0-

Nondurables less food

205.660-196.758-2.9-4.3-

Services less rent of shelter(3)

415.580-425.1736.92.3-

Services less medical care services

348.226-352.5878.41.3-

Energy

281.512272.885266.172-0.6-5.4-2.5

All items less energy

288.091-289.0984.80.3-

All items less food and energy

289.250-290.5325.50.4-

Footnotes
(1) Index on a December 1977=100 base.
(2) This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means estimator.
(3) Index on a December 1982=100 base.
(4) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
(5) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample.
(6) Index on a December 1993=100 base.

- Data not available.
Note: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date. Data not seasonally adjusted.

 

Last Modified Date: Thursday, January 11, 2024