The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Northeast rose 0.3 percent in May, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Sheila Watkins, the Bureau’s regional commissioner, noted that this was due mostly to an increase in the all items less food and energy index (0.2 percent). The energy index and food index also increased over the month, up 1.0 and 0.3 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 Northeast all items CPI-U increased 1.5 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) This was due almost entirely to an advance in the all items less food and energy index, up 1.8 percent. The food index also rose, up 1.6 percent since May 2018, while the energy index declined 2.2 percent. (See table 1.)

Food

The food index increased 0.3 percent since April. Prices for food at home were up 0.4 percent, and those for food away from home edged up 0.2 percent.

From May 2018 to May 2019, the food index increased 1.6 percent. Prices for both food away from home and food at home increased over the year, up 2.4 and 1.0 percent, respectively.

Energy

The energy index, which includes prices for household and transportation fuels, increased 1.0 percent in May, due entirely to higher gasoline prices, up 4.5 percent. Prices were lower for utility (piped) gas service (-3.8 percent) and electricity (-1.1 percent).

The energy index declined 2.2 percent since May 2018. The decrease reflected lower prices for electricity, down 3.9 percent, and gasoline, down 1.4 percent. Utility (piped) gas service prices also decreased (-1.7 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. Prices were higher for shelter (0.2 percent) and medical care (0.4 percent), among others.

The index for all items less food and energy increased 1.8 percent since May 2018, led by higher prices for shelter, up 2.4 percent. Prices also rose over the year for medical care (3.2 percent) and education and communication (2.1 percent), among others.

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

Month	2015		2016		2017		2018		2019
	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month
January	-0.2	-0.4	0.0	0.7	0.6	2.5	0.5	1.6	0.3	1.5
February	0.2	-0.2	0.2	0.7	0.3	2.6	0.4	1.7	0.2	1.3
March	0.3	-0.4	0.2	0.6	-0.1	2.2	0.1	2.0	0.5	1.7
April	0.1	-0.3	0.6	1.0	0.3	1.9	0.4	2.1	0.4	1.7
May	0.4	-0.3	0.3	0.9	0.1	1.7	0.4	2.5	0.3	1.5
June	0.3	0.0	0.2	0.7	0.0	1.5	0.0	2.6
July	-0.1	-0.2	0.0	0.8	-0.2	1.3	0.0	2.7
August	-0.2	-0.1	0.1	1.0	0.3	1.6	0.2	2.7
September	0.0	-0.1	0.2	1.3	0.5	1.9	0.1	2.2
October	-0.2	-0.1	0.2	1.6	-0.1	1.5	-0.1	2.3
November	0.0	0.3	0.0	1.6	0.0	1.6	-0.4	1.9
December	-0.4	0.5	0.0	1.9	0.1	1.7	-0.1	1.7

Geographic divisions

Additional price indexes are now available for the two divisions of the Northeast. Over the month, the all items CPI-U rose 0.3 percent in the New England division, and 0.2 percent in the Middle Atlantic division.

Over the year, the all items index advanced 1.9 percent in the New England division. (See table B.) Prices also rose in the Middle Atlantic division, up 1.3 percent.

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

Area	1-month change	12-month change
Northeast	0.3	1.5
New England Division	0.3	1.9
Middle Atlantic Division	0.2	1.3

The Consumer Price Index for June 2019 is scheduled to be released Thursday, July 11, 2019, 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 93 percent of the total population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers approximately 29 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 75 urban areas across the country from about 5,000 housing units and approximately 22,000 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/pdf/homch17.pdf.

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.

The New England division is comprised of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

The Middle Atlantic division is comprised of New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

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	Mar. 2019	Apr. 2019	May 2019	May 2018	Mar. 2019	Apr. 2019
All items		268.025	269.070	269.744	1.5	0.6	0.3
All items (December 1977 = 100)		422.058	423.703	424.765
Food and beverages		263.215	262.297	263.180	1.5	0.0	0.3
Food		263.847	262.882	263.725	1.6	0.0	0.3
Food at home		251.944	249.654	250.646	1.0	-0.5	0.4
Cereals and bakery products		299.328	296.249	299.438	2.6	0.0	1.1
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		251.915	250.050	250.483	-0.1	-0.6	0.2
Dairy and related products		225.171	229.310	228.482	1.6	1.5	-0.4
Fruits and vegetables		322.627	313.414	316.098	1.1	-2.0	0.9
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials		174.643	173.143	175.936	1.9	0.7	1.6
Other food at home		225.782	224.266	223.253	0.1	-1.1	-0.5
Food away from home		285.104	286.052	286.691	2.4	0.6	0.2
Alcoholic beverages		254.083	253.741	255.102	0.5	0.4	0.5
Housing		287.121	287.759	287.727	1.7	0.2	0.0
Shelter		355.912	357.567	358.234	2.4	0.7	0.2
Rent of primary residence		357.883	359.580	360.075	2.7	0.6	0.1
Owners' equivalent rent of residences(1)		367.684	368.628	368.886	2.3	0.3	0.1
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(1)		367.393	368.336	368.586	2.2	0.3	0.1
Fuels and utilities		232.085	230.184	226.355	-2.0	-2.5	-1.7
Household energy		205.762	203.571	199.632	-2.9	-3.0	-1.9
Energy services		202.903	200.281	196.145	-3.2	-3.3	-2.1
Electricity		205.339	203.784	201.464	-3.9	-1.9	-1.1
Utility (piped) gas service		183.159	178.997	172.217	-1.7	-6.0	-3.8
Household furnishings and operations		121.147	120.260	120.594	0.5	-0.5	0.3
Apparel		130.492	129.262	127.941	-4.2	-2.0	-1.0
Transportation		204.648	209.063	211.629	0.3	3.4	1.2
Private transportation		197.213	201.571	203.615	0.3	3.2	1.0
New and used motor vehicles(2)		96.759	97.173	96.771	0.8	0.0	-0.4
New vehicles		144.836	145.414	146.834	1.7	1.4	1.0
New cars and trucks(2)(3)		100.376	100.784	101.763	1.7	1.4	1.0
New cars(3)		133.757	133.681	135.121	1.4	1.0	1.1
Used cars and trucks		146.118	146.485	144.998	0.5	-0.8	-1.0
Motor fuel		220.378	238.096	248.681	-1.4	12.8	4.4
Gasoline (all types)		219.146	236.988	247.663	-1.4	13.0	4.5
Gasoline, unleaded regular(3)		216.378	234.501	245.346	-1.5	13.4	4.6
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(3)(4)		233.775	249.767	260.167	-0.7	11.3	4.2
Gasoline, unleaded premium(3)		229.423	244.478	253.334	-0.6	10.4	3.6
Motor vehicle insurance(5)		623.412	622.923	622.511	0.3	-0.1	-0.1
Medical care		518.479	519.076	521.223	3.2	0.5	0.4
Medical care commodities		404.465	403.494	403.054	2.9	-0.3	-0.1
Medical care services		551.106	552.182	555.114	3.3	0.7	0.5
Professional services		386.581	386.001	387.893	2.3	0.3	0.5
Recreation(2)		125.130	125.643	126.008	2.2	0.7	0.3
Education and communication(2)		142.681	142.917	143.002	2.1	0.2	0.1
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(5)		1,252.800	1,252.969	1,253.615	3.5	0.1	0.1
Other goods and services		494.119	495.254	495.913	1.3	0.4	0.1
Commodity and service group
Commodities		190.905	191.946	193.019	0.4	1.1	0.6
Commodities less food and beverages		152.017	153.760	154.846	-0.4	1.9	0.7
Nondurables less food and beverages		197.082	200.751	202.844	-0.9	2.9	1.0
Durables		102.383	102.466	102.667	0.4	0.3	0.2
Services		342.262	343.333	343.671	2.0	0.4	0.1
Special aggregate indexes
All items less shelter		237.720	238.547	239.230	1.0	0.6	0.3
All items less medical care		257.011	258.078	258.686	1.3	0.7	0.2
Commodities less food		155.720	157.412	158.511	-0.3	1.8	0.7
Nondurables		230.047	231.639	233.198	0.3	1.4	0.7
Nondurables less food		200.399	203.826	205.873	-0.8	2.7	1.0
Services less rent of shelter(1)		339.303	339.773	339.764	1.6	0.1	0.0
Services less medical care services		327.868	328.938	329.098	1.9	0.4	0.0
Energy		211.657	217.787	219.921	-2.2	3.9	1.0
All items less energy		276.524	277.041	277.569	1.8	0.4	0.2
All items less food and energy		280.539	281.302	281.782	1.8	0.4	0.2
Footnotes (1) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base. (2) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (3) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (4) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base. (5) Indexes on a December 1977=100 base.