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Consumer Price Index
Cincinnati-Hamilton, OH-KY-IN
Second Half 2007 Semiannual Averages and 2007 Annual Average

Consumer prices in the Cincinnati-Hamilton metropolitan area increased 1.9 percent during the second half of 2007, the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics announced today. The Cincinnati-Hamilton Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the second half of 2007 was 195.673 (1982-84=100). This second half gain was more than the 1.0 percent increase recorded in the second half of 2006.

On an annual average basis, Cincinnati area consumers paid 2.8 percent more for retail goods and services in 2007 than in 2006. Major contributing factors included increased costs for housing, food and beverages, and transportation. The remaining consumer expenditure categories of medical care, education and communication, other goods and services, recreation, and apparel, also rose, but with less effect on the overall index.

The housing component rose 2.1 percent from 2006 to 2007. Most of this increase was due to a 2.0 percent increase in the heavily-weighted shelter index. Among household energy costs, the electricity index rose 5.4 percent and the index for utility (piped) gas service fell 5.0 percent. Prices for household furnishings and operations edged up 0.4 percent over the year.

The transportation component increased 3.2 percent during 2007. This change was largely due to increased gasoline prices, which rose 8.1 percent over the year. Gasoline prices rose an average 17.7 percent per year over the previous four years (2003-06).

The food and beverages component gained 3.6 percent over the year. Grocery food prices (food at home index) rose 3.1 percent while the cost of food away from home (restaurant meals, vending machines, school cafeterias, and carryout) increased 2.6 percent. Alcoholic beverage prices rose 11.4 percent.

Medical care costs increased 4.9 percent in 2007. This was less than the area’s 8.1 percent increase a year prior.

The education and communication component gained 3.5 percent in 2007, the category’s largest single-year increase since the BLS began recording it in 1997. The other goods and services component rose 3.3 percent in 2007 following a 3.7 percent gain in 2006 and a 5.7 percent increase in 2005.

Apparel prices increased 2.2 percent in 2007 after increasing 0.8 percent in 2006. The recreation component increased 1.9 percent in 2007 following a 0.4 percent increase in 2006.


Consumer Price Index - Indexes for semiannual averages and percent changes for selected periods.
Cincinnati-Hamilton, OH-KY-IN (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group

Semiannual average
indexes
Percent change to
2nd half 2007 from -
Annual
Average
2007
Percent
change
to 2007
from
2006
2nd half
2006
1st half
2007
2nd half
2007
2nd half
2006
1st half
2007

Expenditure category

 
 

All Items

189.5 192.111 195.673 3.3 1.9 193.892 2.8

All items (1967=100)

586.2 594.434 605.456  

 

599.945  

Food and beverages

176.2 179.456 182.614 3.6 1.8 181.035 3.6

Food

174.6 176.966 179.947 3.1 1.7 178.456 3.0

Food at home

171.9 174.084 177.130 3.0 1.7 175.607 3.1

Food away from home

180.3 182.124 185.516 2.9 1.9 183.820 2.6

Alcoholic beverages

190.6 206.124 211.584 11.0 2.6 208.854 11.4

Housing

179.5 180.989 182.874 1.9 1.0 181.932 2.1

Shelter

203.3 206.409 205.021 0.8 -0.7 205.715 2.0

Rent of primary residence

202.2 203.826 204.961 1.4 0.6 204.393 2.4

Owners' equiv. rent (1)

204.4 206.580 205.306 0.4 -0.6 205.943 1.8

Fuels and utilities

182.3 180.616 199.286 9.3 10.3 189.951 4.3

Household energy

156.9 157.055 171.906 9.6 9.5 164.481 3.2

Gas (piped) and electricity

162.0 161.963 177.313 9.5 9.5 169.638 2.9

Electricity

150.2 150.184 168.992 12.5 12.5 159.588 5.4

Utility (piped) gas service

228.8 228.497 227.066 -0.8 -0.6 227.781 -5.0

Household furnishings and operations

116.1 116.605 116.543 0.4 -0.1 116.574 0.4

Apparel

120.0 115.988 128.644 7.2 10.9 122.316 2.2

Transportation

174.8 179.527 184.840 5.7 3.0 182.183 3.2

Private transportation

173.9 178.027 183.732 5.7 3.2 180.879 2.8

Motor fuel

226.2 242.153 259.152 14.6 7.0 250.653 8.0

Gasoline (all types)

225.6 241.814 258.592 14.6 6.9 250.203 8.1

Unleaded regular (2)

232.2 249.060 266.901 14.9 7.2 257.980 8.2

Unleaded midgrade (2) (3)

220.0 235.603 250.129 13.7 6.2 242.866 7.7

Unleaded premium (2)

195.0 208.449 222.491 14.1 6.7 215.470 7.9

Medical Care

358.0 364.425 371.239 3.7 1.9 367.832 4.9

Recreation (4)

115.7 118.691 117.417 1.5 -1.1 118.054 1.9

Education and communication (4)

114.6 116.268 118.351 3.3 1.8 117.310 3.5

Other goods and services

357.2 363.144 370.655 3.8 2.1 366.899 3.3
 

Commodity and Service Group

 
 

All Items

189.5 192.111 195.673 3.3 1.9 193.892 2.8

Commodities

155.8 158.284 162.530 4.3 2.7 160.407 2.5

Commodities less food & beverages

144.0 146.038 150.658 4.6 3.2 148.348 1.9

Nondurables less food & beverages

167.9 172.109 182.315 8.6 5.9 177.212 3.9

Durables

122.0 121.976 121.537 -0.4 -0.4 121.757 -0.7

Services

225.5 228.435 231.362 2.6 1.3 229.898 3.0
 

Special aggregate indexes:

 
 

All items less medical care

181.6 184.053 187.464 3.2 1.9 185.759 2.7

All items less shelter

185.5 188.219 193.678 4.4 2.9 190.948 3.2

Commodities less food

145.8 148.198 152.859 4.8 3.1 150.528 2.2

Nondurables

173.1 176.890 183.811 6.2 3.9 180.351 3.8

Nondurables less food

169.7 174.541 184.503 8.7 5.7 179.522 4.4

Services less rent of shelter (1)

255.2 258.673 266.948 4.6 3.2 262.811 4.2

Services less medical care services

213.4 215.534 217.991 2.2 1.1 216.762 2.5

Energy

189.5 196.606 212.610 12.2 8.1 204.608 5.7

All items less energy

191.7 193.829 195.709 2.1 1.0 194.769 2.4

All items less food and energy

196.2 198.232 199.912 1.9 0.8 199.072 2.2

Footnotes
(1) Indes is on a November 1982=100 base
(2) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample.
(3) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
(4) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
- Data not available

NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.

 

Scheduled release date for the 1st Half of 2008 CPI: Thursday, August 14, 2008

###

CPI HOTLINE SERVICE PROVIDES LATEST INDEXES 24 HOURS A DAY

The all items CPI-U and CPI-W for the U.S. City Average and for the Cincinnati area are available to the public 24 hours a day, 7 days a week through the Bureau's CPI Hotline service. This recorded message also provides percent changes from the prior period and from a year earlier, as well as the scheduled release date for the next CPI issuance. The Hotline number in Cincinnati is (513) 684-2349, menu option 2.

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.

 

Last Modified Date: February 20, 2008

 

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