Prices in the Anchorage area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), declined 4.0 percent for the two months ending in August 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that the August decrease was influenced by lower prices for food away from home and gasoline. (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 7.6 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) Food prices advanced 6.9 percent. Energy prices rose 18.8 percent, largely the result of an increase in the price of gasoline. The index for all items less food and energy rose 6.7 percent over the year. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices declined 19.8 percent for the two months ending in August. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home declined 1.0 percent, influenced by lower prices for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (-5.7 percent). Prices for food away from home fell 42.7 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices advanced 6.9 percent. Prices for food at home rose 8.2 percent since a year ago, with increases in five of the six subcategories. Prices for food away from home advanced 4.5 percent.

Energy

The energy index declined 6.2 percent for the two months ending in August. The decrease was mainly due to lower prices for gasoline (-10.9 percent). Prices for natural gas service advanced 2.1 percent, and prices for electricity rose 1.5 percent for the same period.

Energy prices rose 18.8 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (33.6 percent). Prices paid for natural gas service increased 2.2 percent, but prices for electricity declined 2.6 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy declined 0.1 percent in the latest two-month period. Lower prices for household furnishings and operations (-2.2 percent) and recreation (-0.7 percent) were partially offset by higher prices for apparel (2.7 percent) and shelter (2.1 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 6.7 percent. Components contributing to the increase included shelter (10.1 percent) and other goods and services (7.9 percent).

The October 2022 Consumer Price Index for the Anchorage area is scheduled to be released on November 10, 2022.

Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measures 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, 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 Urban Alaska area covered in this release consists of Anchorage and Matanuska-Susitna Borough in the State of Alaska.

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

Urban Alaska (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes				Percent change from-
	Historical data	Jun. 2022	Jul. 2022	Aug. 2022	Aug. 2021	Jun. 2022	Jul. 2022
Expenditure category
All items		268.916	-	258.149	7.6	-4.0	-
All items (1967=100)		717.774	-	689.035	-	-	-
Food and beverages		313.416	-	253.686	6.8	-19.1	-
Food		328.719	-	263.673	6.9	-19.8	-
Food at home		266.107	257.629	263.396	8.2	-1.0	2.2
Cereals and bakery products		276.048	-	273.922	9.0	-0.8	-
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		263.467	-	248.495	-3.7	-5.7	-
Dairy and related products		252.873	-	256.274	14.0	1.3	-
Fruits and vegetables		389.617	-	396.445	10.2	1.8	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)		176.439	-	186.424	17.0	5.7	-
Other food at home		223.976	-	219.255	12.2	-2.1	-
Food away from home		453.489	-	259.763	4.5	-42.7	-
Alcoholic beverages		161.471	-	159.495	3.9	-1.2	-
Housing		224.166	-	227.265	8.2	1.4	-
Shelter		225.754	231.912	230.430	10.1	2.1	-0.6
Rent of primary residence(2)		214.582	216.452	218.464	6.7	1.8	0.9
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)		225.228	227.688	229.592	9.3	1.9	0.8
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)		225.228	227.688	229.592	9.3	1.9	0.8
Fuels and utilities		345.442	-	349.009	1.1	1.0	-
Household energy		345.921	351.367	351.625	0.0	1.6	0.1
Energy services		382.553	389.566	389.566	-0.2	1.8	0.0
Electricity		319.218	324.079	324.079	-2.6	1.5	0.0
Utility (piped) gas service		466.846	476.840	476.840	2.2	2.1	0.0
Household furnishings and operations		147.547	-	144.281	4.1	-2.2	-
Apparel		153.639	-	157.724	1.2	2.7	-
Transportation		313.123	-	292.096	13.3	-6.7	-
Private transportation		315.269	-	304.353	11.9	-3.5	-
New and used motor vehicles(3)		135.564	-	135.707	-	0.1	-
New vehicles(1)		271.837	-	274.213	-	0.9	-
Used cars and trucks(1)		400.273	-	399.498	7.1	-0.2	-
Motor fuel		456.032	446.332	407.658	34.8	-10.6	-8.7
Gasoline (all types)		457.045	446.133	407.215	33.6	-10.9	-8.7
Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)		442.900	431.199	393.535	33.9	-11.1	-8.7
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)		434.258	428.476	390.052	33.6	-10.2	-9.0
Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)		455.243	449.080	410.206	32.5	-9.9	-8.7
Medical care		687.385	-	-	-	-	-
Recreation(3)		138.137	-	137.233	2.6	-0.7	-
Education and communication(3)		115.622	-	115.412	0.8	-0.2	-
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)		770.355	-	766.816	0.3	-0.5	-
Other goods and services		409.823	-	409.969	7.9	0.0	-
Commodity and service group
All items		268.916	-	258.149	7.6	-4.0	-
Commodities		241.239	-	218.663	7.8	-9.4	-
Commodities less food & beverages		205.366	-	200.328	8.3	-2.5	-
Nondurables less food & beverages		273.857	-	262.425	14.7	-4.2	-
Durables		151.497	-	150.365	2.9	-0.7	-
Services		291.061	-	291.333	7.5	0.1	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care		254.101	-	242.594	7.8	-4.5	-
All items less shelter		288.833	-	269.989	6.5	-6.5	-
Commodities less food		203.786	-	198.855	8.2	-2.4	-
Nondurables		296.166	-	257.861	10.2	-12.9	-
Nondurables less food		264.691	-	254.057	14.1	-4.0	-
Services less rent of shelter(2)		398.350	-	390.374	4.7	-2.0	-
Services less medical care services		267.040	-	266.550	7.7	-0.2	-
Energy		410.455	407.164	384.929	18.8	-6.2	-5.5
All items less energy		261.031	-	251.110	6.7	-3.8	-
All items less food and energy		249.472	-	249.289	6.7	-0.1	-
Footnotes (1) Indexes on a December 1978=100 base. (2) Indexes on a December 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.
- Data not available NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.