Midwest Information Office

For release: 7:30 A.M. CT, Friday, January 15, 2010
BLSInfoChicago@bls.gov
General Information: (312) 353-1880
Media Contact: Paul LaPorte (312) 353-1138

CONSUMER PRICE INDEX, CHICAGO-GARY-KENOSHA, ILL.-IND.-WIS. CMSA, DECEMBER 2009

The Chicago-Gary-Kenosha metropolitan area Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) declined 0.5 percent in December, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. For the year ending in December 2009, the Chicago area CPI-U increased 2.5 percent. This annual increase compares to a 0.6 percent decline in 2008 and a 4.7 percent rise in 2007. The December 2009 Chicago area CPI-U was 211.185 (1982-84=100). 

Jay A. Mousa, regional commissioner for the Bureau in Chicago, stated that declines in the components for housing, transportation, and apparel were the largest contributing factors to the 0.5 percent decline in the all items CPI-U in December. Recreation costs also declined in December, but with little impact. The components for food and beverages and other goods and services rose in December, only partially offsetting these declines. Costs for education and communication and medical care changed little over the month.

The housing component posted a 0.5 percent decline in December. This decline was similar to the 0.6 percent decrease last December. The recent drop was attributed to a 0.4 percent decline in the shelter index and decreases of 3.0 percent for electricity and 1.8 percent for utility (piped) gas service. The household furnishing and operations index was unchanged in December. On an annual basis, the housing component was down 1.2 percent. Annual declines in the indexes for utility (piped) gas service (-28.1 percent), electricity (-7.2 percent), and household furnishings and operations (-2.2 percent) were responsible for the decline. Shelter costs rose 0.9 percent for the year.

The transportation component declined 1.2 percent due to a 3.6 percent drop in prices at the gas pumps. Despite their drop, prices for gasoline were up 54.5 percent compared to December 2008. In the previous annual period (December 2007-2008), gasoline prices were down 43.3 percent. The recent annual increase in gasoline prices pushed overall transportation costs up 15.0 percent for the year. In the previous annual period, overall transportation costs fell by about the same margin (-15.5 percent). 

Apparel prices fell 3.6 percent during December, typical behavior for this time of the year. December price declines for apparel averaged 6.7 percent the past three years. For the year, apparel prices rose 3.4 percent following a smaller increase of 0.2 percent for the year ending in December 2008.

The recreation component declined 1.1 percent during December. For the year ended in December, recreation costs were 0.6 percent higher. This compares with a 0.7 percent annual increase in 2008.

The food and beverages component rose 0.7 percent from November to December. This increase was attributed to a 1.4 percent rise in the food at home index (grocery food items). Costs for eating out and alcoholic beverages were nearly unchanged in December. Food and beverage prices finished the year 1.6 percent higher, not as much as the 4.8 percent increase experienced in 2008. Grocery food prices were unchanged on average compared to December 2008 while costs for dining out (+3.1 percent) and alcoholic beverages (+2.8 percent) were higher over the year. 

The other goods and services component gained 0.7 percent in December and was up 6.1 percent for the year. In the past six years, annual increases had ranged from 1.7 to 2.2 percent.

The education and communication component changed little in December (-0.1 percent). For the year, the component was up 1.0 percent following a 3.1 percent increase in the previous 12-month period ended in December 2008.

Medical care costs were nearly unchanged in December (-0.1 percent), for the year however, they were 5.9 percent higher. This recent annual increase was more than the 3.5 percent rise reported for 2008, but closer to the 6.4 percent advance in 2007.

 

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Scheduled release date for the January 2010 CPI: Friday, February 19, 2010

Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, Ill.-Ind.-Wis. Combined Metropolitan Statistical Area (CMSA) includes Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties in Illinois; Lake and Porter Counties in Indiana; and Kenosha County in Wisconsin.

 

BRIEF EXPLANATION OF THE CPI

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. Prices are collected in 87 urban areas across the country from about 50,000 housing units and approximately 23,000 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. Prices of food, fuels, and a few other items are obtained every month in all 87 locations. Prices of most other commodities and services are collected every month in the three largest geographic areas and every other month in other areas. Prices of most goods and services are obtained by personal visits of the Bureau's trained representatives.

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. Separate indexes are also published by size of city, by region of the country, for cross-classifications of regions and population-size classes, and for 27 local areas. Area indexes do not measure differences in the level of prices among cities; they only measure the average change in prices for each area since the base period.

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.

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Last Modified Date: January 15, 2010