Prices in the San Francisco area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), advanced 1.4 percent for the two months ending in February 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that the February increase was influenced by higher prices for shelter and food. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U rose 5.2 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) Food prices increased 9.0 percent. Energy prices jumped 26.9 percent, largely the result of an increase in the price of gasoline. The index for all items less food and energy rose 3.4 percent over the year. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices increased 3.2 percent for the two months ending in February. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home advanced 3.6 percent, strongly influenced by higher prices within the other food at home category (9.8 percent). Prices for food away from home increased 2.7 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices increased 9.0 percent. Prices for food at home jumped 12.1 percent since a year ago. Increases across food at home expenditure categories ranged from 6.1 percent for nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials to 19.6 percent for other food at home. Prices for food away from home rose 5.7 percent.

Energy

The energy index advanced 3.3 percent for the two months ending in February. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for electricity (7.8 percent). Prices for natural gas service increased 4.7 percent, and prices for gasoline rose 0.3 percent for the same period.

Energy prices jumped 26.9 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (35.4 percent). Prices paid for natural gas service jumped 32.6 percent, and prices for electricity moved up 15.4 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.0 percent in the latest two-month period. Higher prices for apparel (4.8 percent), medical care (1.1 percent), and shelter (0.9 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for education and communication (-0.2 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 3.4 percent. Components contributing to the increase included used cars and trucks (39.7 percent), recreation (8.9 percent), apparel (7.2 percent), and shelter (1.4 percent).

Table A. San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA, CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted

Month	2018		2019		2020		2021		2022
	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month
February	1.4	3.6	0.5	3.5	0.9	2.9	0.5	1.6	1.4	5.2
April	0.8	3.2	1.2	4.0	-0.5	1.1	1.7	3.8
June	0.9	3.9	0.2	3.2	0.7	1.6	0.0	3.2
August	0.6	4.3	0.1	2.7	0.0	1.6	0.5	3.7
October	0.7	4.4	1.0	3.0	0.5	1.1	0.7	3.8
December	0.1	4.5	-0.5	2.5	0.4	2.0	0.8	4.2

The April 2022 Consumer Price Index for the San Francisco area is scheduled to be released on May 11, 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 San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA. metropolitan area covered in this release is comprised of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo Counties in the State of California.

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

San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes				Percent change from-
	Historical data	Dec. 2021	Jan. 2022	Feb. 2022	Feb. 2021	Dec. 2021	Jan. 2022
Expenditure category
All items		315.805	-	320.195	5.2	1.4	-
All items (1967=100)		970.872	-	984.369	-	-	-
Food and beverages		324.575	-	334.605	8.4	3.1	-
Food		325.866	-	336.402	9.0	3.2	-
Food at home		294.986	295.373	305.485	12.1	3.6	3.4
Cereals and bakery products		302.276	-	308.332	13.7	2.0	-
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		331.492	-	333.698	10.7	0.7	-
Dairy and related products		294.216	-	302.103	8.5	2.7	-
Fruits and vegetables		389.201	-	397.584	7.1	2.2	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)		218.251	-	216.230	6.1	-0.9	-
Other food at home		240.545	-	264.150	19.6	9.8	-
Food away from home		360.146	-	370.023	5.7	2.7	-
Alcoholic beverages		312.260	-	315.737	1.3	1.1	-
Housing		366.364	-	370.763	2.4	1.2	-
Shelter		411.972	412.937	415.760	1.4	0.9	0.7
Rent of primary residence(2)		467.588	468.496	469.286	0.1	0.4	0.2
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)(3)		443.052	444.237	444.617	1.3	0.4	0.1
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(1)(2)		443.052	444.237	444.617	1.3	0.4	0.1
Fuels and utilities		492.167	-	514.971	13.1	4.6	-
Household energy		439.008	469.548	469.032	18.4	6.8	-0.1
Energy services(2)		440.057	471.320	470.615	18.4	6.9	-0.1
Electricity(2)		458.389	494.214	494.214	15.4	7.8	0.0
Utility (piped) gas service(2)		404.609	426.105	423.823	32.6	4.7	-0.5
Household furnishings and operations		158.186	-	160.063	3.9	1.2	-
Apparel		107.828	-	113.006	7.2	4.8	-
Transportation		236.457	-	238.498	16.5	0.9	-
Private transportation		240.566	-	241.233	18.5	0.3	-
New and used motor vehicles(4)		115.888	-	-	-	-	-
New vehicles(1)		187.999	-	-	-	-	-
Used cars and trucks(1)		368.270	-	376.607	39.7	2.3	-
Motor fuel		342.260	340.187	343.538	35.5	0.4	1.0
Gasoline (all types)		341.048	338.985	342.218	35.4	0.3	1.0
Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)		341.411	339.350	342.591	36.0	0.3	1.0
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)		317.984	316.149	319.134	34.5	0.4	0.9
Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)		321.924	319.953	322.988	33.4	0.3	0.9
Medical care		561.352	-	567.774	2.3	1.1	-
Recreation(6)		136.386	-	137.237	8.9	0.6	-
Education and communication(6)		155.817	-	155.546	3.1	-0.2	-
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)		-	-	-	-	-	-
Other goods and services		533.001	-	540.581	3.0	1.4	-
Commodity and service group
All items		315.805	-	320.195	5.2	1.4	-
Commodities		217.808	-	222.186	11.5	2.0	-
Commodities less food & beverages		160.582	-	162.426	14.9	1.1	-
Nondurables less food & beverages		208.754	-	212.593	15.0	1.8	-
Durables		113.292	-	-	-	-	-
Services		398.306	-	402.721	2.7	1.1	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care		305.667	-	309.967	5.4	1.4	-
All items less shelter		277.666	-	282.565	8.3	1.8	-
Commodities less food		167.436	-	169.355	13.9	1.1	-
Nondurables		268.041	-	275.005	10.8	2.6	-
Nondurables less food		216.969	-	220.811	13.4	1.8	-
Services less rent of shelter(3)		400.231	-	405.976	4.8	1.4	-
Services less medical care services		387.032	-	391.232	2.8	1.1	-
Energy		382.822	393.801	395.621	26.9	3.3	0.5
All items less energy		316.469	-	320.537	4.2	1.3	-
All items less food and energy		315.864	-	318.955	3.4	1.0	-
Footnotes (1) Indexes 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) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base. (4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (5) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base. (6) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
- Data not available NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.