Consumer Price Index, Northeast Region – July 2011 (PDF)

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Northeast region edged up 0.2 percent in July, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Sheila Watkins, the Bureau’s regional commissioner, noted that increases in the all items less food and energy index (0.3 percent) and the food index (0.6 percent) were moderated by a decrease in the energy index (-0.7 percent) since June. Within the all items less food and energy index, higher prices for shelter led the recent advance. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U increased 3.6 percent—the largest over-the-year advance since October 2008. (See chart 1 and table A.) The energy index jumped 19.1 percent over the year. Prices were also higher for all items less food and energy (1.8 percent) and food (4.1 percent) since July 2010. (See table 1.)

Food

The food index rose 0.6 percent over the month. Prices for food at home advanced 0.8 percent and those for food away from home increased 0.3 percent since June.

Over the year, the food index rose 4.1 percent as prices for the food at home and food away from home components increased 5.2 and 2.6 percent, respectively. The 12-month advance in the food index was the largest since March 2009.

Energy

Due almost entirely to a 1.6-percent decline in gasoline prices, the energy index, which includes prices for household and transportation fuels, decreased 0.7 percent over the month. Utility (piped) gas service prices fell for the fifth straight month, down 9.3 percent since February and 0.3 percent since June. Moderating the recent decline in the energy index, electricity prices rose 1.9 percent in July.

Despite its recent decrease, the energy index advanced 19.1 percent over the year, due largely to a 36.8-percent jump in gasoline prices. Both the utility (piped) gas service and electricity indexes posted 12-month decreases, down 5.2 and 0.4 percent, respectively.

All items less food and energy

Led by higher prices for shelter (0.5 percent) and new and used motor vehicles (0.9 percent), the index for all items less food and energy increased 0.3 percent since June. A smaller-than-usual seasonal decrease in apparel prices, down 1.2 percent, moderated the one-month advance in the all items less food and energy index.

Over the last 12 months, the index for all items less food and energy rose 1.8 percent, led by an increase in the shelter index, up 1.6 percent. Moderating the advance in the all items less food and energy index was a 1.0-percent decline in recreation prices—the 13th consecutive over-the-year decrease in this index.

The August 2011 Consumer Price Index for the Northeast region is scheduled to be released on September 15, 2011, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).

Table A. Northeast region CPI-U 1-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index (not seasonally adjusted)

Month	2006		2007		2008		2009		2010		2011
	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month
January	1.0	4.1	0.3	2.3	0.4	3.9	0.2	0.5	0.4	3.0	0.4	1.6
February	0.3	3.9	0.4	2.4	0.4	4.0	0.6	0.7	0.0	2.5	0.5	2.0
March	0.6	3.3	0.8	2.6	0.8	3.9	0.2	0.2	0.3	2.6	0.8	2.5
April	0.9	3.8	0.5	2.2	0.5	3.9	0.2	-0.1	0.2	2.5	0.5	2.8
May	0.5	4.6	0.5	2.3	0.9	4.3	0.1	-0.8	0.2	2.6	0.5	3.2
June	0.5	5.1	0.4	2.3	1.1	5.0	0.8	-1.2	-0.1	1.7	0.1	3.4
July	0.4	4.6	0.2	2.0	0.8	5.7	0.1	-1.9	0.0	1.6	0.2	3.6
August	0.3	4.5	-0.2	1.6	-0.3	5.5	0.3	-1.2	0.1	1.4
September	-0.8	2.6	-0.1	2.4	-0.4	5.2	0.1	-0.7	-0.1	1.2
October	-0.5	1.7	0.2	3.1	-0.9	4.0	0.0	0.2	0.3	1.5
November	-0.2	2.3	0.6	4.0	-1.6	1.7	0.2	2.0	0.2	1.5
December	0.2	3.0	0.0	3.8	-0.9	0.7	-0.1	2.8	0.0	1.6

 

Technical Note

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 87 percent of the total population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers 32 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 Northeast region is comprised of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral phone number:  1-800-877-8339.

For personal assistance or further information on Consumer Price Indexes, as well as other Bureau products, contact the Mid-Atlantic Information Office at (215) 597-3282 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET.

Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods, Northeast Region, (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted) (not seasonally adjusted)

Expenditure category	Indexes				Percent change from
	Historical data	May 2011	Jun. 2011	Jul. 2011	Jul. 2010	May 2011	Jun. 2011
All items		241.566	241.690	242.282	3.6	0.3	0.2
All items (December 1977 = 100)		380.393	380.588	381.520
Food and beverages		232.474	233.553	234.819	3.9	1.0	0.5
Food		232.053	233.202	234.580	4.1	1.1	0.6
Food at home		231.099	232.427	234.223	5.2	1.4	0.8
Food away from home		236.268	237.185	238.009	2.6	0.7	0.3
Alcoholic beverages		236.830	236.952	236.670	1.4	-0.1	-0.1
Housing		247.442	248.683	249.819	1.9	1.0	0.5
Shelter		294.907	296.810	298.352	1.6	1.2	0.5
Rent of primary residence (1)		291.893	292.746	293.597	1.9	0.6	0.3
Owners' equivalent rent of residences (1) (2)		306.204	307.015	308.043	1.2	0.6	0.3
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence (1) (2)		306.143	306.958	307.981	1.2	0.6	0.3
Fuels and utilities		224.129	224.560	225.450	4.3	0.6	0.4
Household energy		206.393	206.845	207.308	4.3	0.4	0.2
Energy services (1) (3)		194.153	195.818	197.284	-1.8	1.6	0.7
Electricity (1)		190.703	193.495	197.166	-0.4	3.4	1.9
Utility (piped) gas service (1) (4)		(R)185.791	(R)184.552	184.024	-5.2	-1.0	-0.3
Household furnishings and operations		127.689	127.396	127.445	0.9	-0.2	0.0
Apparel		124.472	122.579	121.166	5.5	-2.7	-1.2
Transportation		217.959	215.867	215.391	12.0	-1.2	-0.2
Private transportation		211.647	209.252	208.854	12.5	-1.3	-0.2
New and used motor vehicles (5)		98.488	99.699	100.580	3.5	2.1	0.9
New vehicles		140.948	141.582	141.788	3.1	0.6	0.1
New cars and trucks (5) (6)		97.668	98.114	98.268	3.1	0.6	0.2
New cars (6)		137.405	138.379	138.501	2.5	0.8	0.1
Used cars and trucks		155.539	159.467	162.306	7.0	4.4	1.8
Motor fuel		330.328	314.376	309.459	36.7	-6.3	-1.6
Gasoline (all types)		329.550	313.496	308.528	36.8	-6.4	-1.6
Gasoline, unleaded regular (5)		332.273	315.567	310.498	37.3	-6.6	-1.6
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (6) (7)		333.103	317.999	312.972	35.8	-6.0	-1.6
Gasoline, unleaded premium (6)		314.149	300.646	296.123	34.7	-5.7	-1.5
Medical care		421.873	421.695	421.872	3.1	0.0	0.0
Medical care commodities		355.582	354.965	353.876	4.5	-0.5	-0.3
Medical care services		438.119	438.122	438.804	2.7	0.2	0.2
Professional services		336.270	336.272	336.912	1.8	0.2	0.2
Recreation (5)		117.810	117.779	118.230	-1.0	0.4	0.4
Education and communication (5)		132.883	132.844	133.239	-0.2	0.3	0.3
Other goods and services		416.065	415.687	416.181	1.4	0.0	0.1
Commodity and service group
Commodities		192.893	191.774	191.616	7.1	-0.7	-0.1
Commodities less food and beverages		167.905	165.906	165.153	9.2	-1.6	-0.5
Nondurables less food and beverages		218.852	214.327	212.473	13.6	-2.9	-0.9
Durables		110.953	111.520	111.880	1.8	0.8	0.3
Services		289.421	290.731	292.042	1.5	0.9	0.5
Special aggregate indexes
All items less shelter		223.923	223.383	223.624	4.6	-0.1	0.1
All items less medical care		233.520	233.654	234.257	3.6	0.3	0.3
Commodities less food		170.701	168.752	168.008	8.8	-1.6	-0.4
Nondurables		227.350	225.353	224.913	8.7	-1.1	-0.2
Nondurables less food		219.911	215.633	213.863	12.8	-2.8	-0.8
Services less rent of shelter (2)		293.848	294.515	295.584	1.4	0.6	0.4
Services less medical care services		278.929	280.292	281.621	1.4	1.0	0.5
Energy		258.577	252.096	250.285	19.1	-3.2	-0.7
All items less energy		242.139	242.949	243.795	2.2	0.7	0.3
All items less food and energy		245.493	246.246	247.000	1.8	0.6	0.3
Footnotes (1) This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means estimator. (2) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base. (3) This index series was formerly titled Gas (piped) and electricity. (4) Revised index: Apr. 2011=195.092. (5) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (6) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (7) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base. (R) Revised.
Note: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.

 

Last Modified Date: August 19, 2011