The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Northeast declined 0.2 percent in October, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. A 3.6-percent decline in the energy index since September was moderated by increases in the all items less food and energy index and the food index, up 0.2 and 0.1 percent, respectively. (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 1.4 percent, due mainly to an advance in the all items less food and energy index, up 1.6 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) The food index also rose since October 2013, up 2.8 percent, while the energy index declined 2.7 percent. (See table 1.)

Food

Over the month, food prices inched up 0.1 percent, as both components of the index increased. Prices for the food away from home component edged up 0.2 percent and those for food at home rose 0.1 percent.

Over the year, the food index advanced 2.8 percent. Prices were higher for both the food at home and food away from home components, up 2.8 and 2.9 percent, respectively, since October 2013.

Energy

The energy index, which includes prices for household and transportation fuels, declined for the fifth consecutive month, down 8.9 percent since May and 3.6 percent since September.  The one-month decrease was due mostly to a 5.1-percent decline in gasoline prices. Prices were also lower for electricity (-1.6 percent) and utility (piped) gas service (-2.7 percent) in October.

Energy prices declined over the year, down 2.7 percent, mainly reflecting a 4.3-percent decrease in gasoline prices. Utility (piped) gas service prices were also lower since October 2013, down 7.2 percent—the largest decrease in two years; electricity prices rose 3.0 percent over the year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy edged up 0.2 percent over the month, led by a 0.2-percent increase in shelter prices. Higher prices for apparel (0.7 percent), among others, also contributed to the advance.  Price declines for used cars and trucks (-2.1 percent) and education and communication (-0.4 percent) moderated the rise in the all items less food and energy index since September.

The all items less food and energy index rose 1.6 percent over the year. The advance primarily reflected a 2.6-percent increase in prices for shelter. Additionally, increases in the medical care index (2.0 percent) and several others were moderated by decreases in the indexes for household furnishings and operations (-0.7 percent) and recreation (-0.4 percent).

 

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

Month	2009		2010		2011		2012		2013		2014
	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	0.2	0.5	0.4	3.0	0.4	1.6	0.4	2.9	0.3	1.8	0.6	1.5
February	0.6	0.7	0.0	2.5	0.5	2.0	0.4	2.8	0.6	2.0	0.1	1.0
March	0.2	0.2	0.3	2.6	0.8	2.5	0.5	2.5	0.0	1.5	0.5	1.5
April	0.2	-0.1	0.2	2.5	0.5	2.8	0.3	2.3	-0.1	1.1	0.0	1.6
May	0.1	-0.8	0.2	2.6	0.5	3.2	-0.1	1.7	0.0	1.2	0.4	2.0
June	0.8	-1.2	-0.1	1.7	0.1	3.4	-0.2	1.5	0.1	1.5	0.0	1.9
July	0.1	-1.9	0.0	1.6	0.2	3.6	-0.1	1.1	0.2	1.8	0.1	1.8
August	0.3	-1.2	0.1	1.4	0.3	3.8	0.5	1.3	0.2	1.5	-0.3	1.3
September	0.1	-0.7	-0.1	1.2	0.1	4.0	0.5	1.7	0.1	1.1	0.0	1.2
October	0.0	0.2	0.3	1.5	-0.1	3.6	0.1	1.9	-0.4	0.7	-0.2	1.4
November	0.2	2.0	0.2	1.5	-0.1	3.2	0.2	1.8	0.1	1.0
December	-0.1	2.8	0.0	1.6	-0.3	2.9	-0.3	1.8	0.0	1.3

The November 2014 Consumer Price Index for the Northeast region is scheduled to be released on December 17, 2014, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).

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 89 percent of the total population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers 28 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/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 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; Federal Relay Service:  1-800-877-8339.

Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods

Northeast (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Expenditure category	Indexes				Percent change from
	Historical data	Aug. 2014	Sep. 2014	Oct. 2014	Oct. 2013	Aug. 2014	Sep. 2014
All items		253.185	253.154	252.730	1.4	-0.2	-0.2
All items (December 1977 = 100)		398.688	398.640	397.972
Food and beverages		248.184	249.219	249.505	2.7	0.5	0.1
Food		248.085	249.189	249.557	2.8	0.6	0.1
Food at home		245.799	247.131	247.358	2.8	0.6	0.1
Food away from home		254.568	255.348	255.929	2.9	0.5	0.2
Alcoholic beverages		248.276	248.417	247.664	1.0	-0.2	-0.3
Housing		262.659	262.092	261.938	2.0	-0.3	-0.1
Shelter		318.800	318.842	319.396	2.6	0.2	0.2
Rent of primary residence (1)		318.041	318.594	319.098	2.5	0.3	0.2
Owners' equivalent rent of residences (1) (2)		329.624	330.115	330.397	2.3	0.2	0.1
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence (1) (2)		329.482	329.971	330.250	2.2	0.2	0.1
Fuels and utilities		225.661	221.569	217.529	-0.3	-3.6	-1.8
Household energy		203.648	199.225	194.932	-0.9	-4.3	-2.2
Energy services (1)		193.235	188.904	185.338	0.0	-4.1	-1.9
Electricity (1)		199.230	194.473	191.398	3.0	-3.9	-1.6
Utility (piped) gas service (1)		168.181	165.094	160.580	-7.2	-4.5	-2.7
Household furnishings and operations		124.391	124.274	124.555	-0.7	0.1	0.2
Apparel		129.552	134.297	135.262	1.2	4.4	0.7
Transportation		217.996	215.981	213.407	-0.6	-2.1	-1.2
Private transportation		210.969	208.854	205.838	-0.5	-2.4	-1.4
New and used motor vehicles (3)		98.967	98.456	98.143	-0.3	-0.8	-0.3
New vehicles		144.379	144.073	144.345	0.6	0.0	0.2
New cars and trucks (3) (4)		100.016	99.805	99.997	0.6	0.0	0.2
New cars (4)		137.473	136.765	137.102	-0.7	-0.3	0.2
Used cars and trucks		160.768	158.793	155.450	-0.9	-3.3	-2.1
Motor fuel		297.424	289.733	275.024	-4.4	-7.5	-5.1
Gasoline (all types)		296.181	288.488	273.775	-4.3	-7.6	-5.1
Gasoline, unleaded regular (4)		296.513	288.556	273.259	-4.6	-7.8	-5.3
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (4) (5)		304.395	297.328	283.490	-3.5	-6.9	-4.7
Gasoline, unleaded premium (4)		289.786	283.400	270.987	-3.4	-6.5	-4.4
Medical care		455.688	457.252	457.876	2.0	0.5	0.1
Medical care commodities		371.018	373.091	373.277	1.9	0.6	0.0
Medical care services		478.958	480.327	481.094	2.1	0.4	0.2
Professional services		353.313	354.163	355.024	1.0	0.5	0.2
Recreation (3)		119.552	119.424	119.389	-0.4	-0.1	0.0
Education and communication (3)		138.465	138.767	138.258	0.2	-0.1	-0.4
Other goods and services		440.729	442.129	444.767	2.0	0.9	0.6
Commodity and service group
Commodities		195.065	195.291	194.139	0.4	-0.5	-0.6
Commodities less food and beverages		164.205	164.073	162.349	-1.1	-1.1	-1.1
Nondurables less food and beverages		214.094	214.409	211.218	-1.0	-1.3	-1.5
Durables		108.628	108.116	107.800	-1.2	-0.8	-0.3
Services		310.073	309.809	310.037	1.9	0.0	0.1
Special aggregate indexes
All items less shelter		231.075	231.017	230.220	0.7	-0.4	-0.3
All items less medical care		244.248	244.152	243.685	1.3	-0.2	-0.2
Commodities less food		167.405	167.281	165.581	-1.0	-1.1	-1.0
Nondurables		231.993	232.652	231.082	0.9	-0.4	-0.7
Nondurables less food		216.014	216.318	213.275	-0.9	-1.3	-1.4
Services less rent of shelter (2)		311.577	310.975	310.845	1.2	-0.2	0.0
Services less medical care services		298.323	297.963	298.157	1.9	-0.1	0.1
Energy		242.939	237.149	228.510	-2.7	-5.9	-3.6
All items less energy		256.702	257.267	257.690	1.8	0.4	0.2
All items less food and energy		259.895	260.369	260.804	1.6	0.3	0.2
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) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (5) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
Note: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.