San Francisco area consumers paid more than the U.S. city average for electricity (64.6 percent), utility (piped) gas (25.9 percent), and gasoline (6.4 percent) in April 2012, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Richard J. Holden noted the percent differential for utility (piped) gas widened as local prices fell at a slower rate than those for the nation. The gap between area and national prices for gasoline decreased as gasoline prices rose slower in the San Francisco area than nationwide. (See table A. All data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year analysis is used throughout.)

A kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity cost San Francisco area consumers $0.209 in April 2012, little changed from one year earlier. Nationwide, electricity prices averaged $0.127 in April 2012, the same as the previous year. For the past five years, electricity prices in the San Francisco area have been consistently above the national average and ranged from approximately 47.0 percent to over 88.0 percent higher. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

A therm—a measure of constant heating value—of utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, averaged $1.197 in the San Francisco area in April 2012, a decrease of 7.8 percent from the previous April. Nationwide, a therm averaged $0.951 in April 2012, down 11.8 percent over the year. (See chart 2.)

In April 2012, gasoline in San Francisco averaged $4.230 per gallon. Gas prices in San Francisco were $0.254 or 6.4 percent higher than the national average of $3.976. Over-the-year, gasoline prices were little changed in San Francisco and up 2.9 percent nationwide. Although gasoline prices can be volatile from month to month, the local price for gasoline has not fallen below the U.S. city average for the past five years. (See chart 3.)

Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area (CMSA) Definition:  The San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, Calif. metropolitan area is comprised of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, and Sonoma Counties in California.
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For personal assistance or further information on the CPI data, as well as other Bureau data, contact the West Information Office at (415) 625-2270 from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. PT.  Information on the Consumer Price Index and other surveys and programs is available on our Web site at www.bls.gov/ro9/.

Technical Information
Average prices for electricity, utility (piped) gas, and gasoline are published monthly for the U.S. city average, the 4 regions, the 3 population size classes, 10 region/size-class cross-classifications, and the 14 largest local index areas. For electricity, average prices per kilowatt-hour (kWh) and per 500 kWh are published. For utility (piped) gas, average prices per therm, per 40 therms, and per 100 therms are published. For gasoline, the average price per gallon is published.  Average prices for commonly available grades of gasoline are published as well as the average price across all grades.
Price quotes for 40 therms and 100 therms of utility (piped) gas and for 500 kWh of electricity are collected in sample outlets for use in the average price programs only. Since they are for specified consumption amounts, they are not used in the CPI. All other price quotes used for average price estimation are regular CPI data.

With the exception of the 40 therms, 100 therms, and 500 kWh price quotes, all eligible prices are converted to a price per normalized quantity. These prices are then used to estimate a price for a defined fixed quantity.