The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington increased 1.3 percent from February to April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Sheila Watkins noted that the recent two-month rise reflected an 8.1-percent increase in the energy index and a 0.7-percent rise in the all items less food and energy index. The food index also increased since February, up 0.5 percent. (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 1.9 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) The over-the-year rise was led by an increase in the all items less food and energy index (1.9 percent). The energy index and food index also advanced since April 2018, up 2.0 and 1.6 percent, respectively. (See table 1.)

Food

The food index rose 0.5 percent over the last two months. Prices for both food at home and food away from home increased since February, up 0.5 and 0.4 percent, respectively.

Over the year, the food index increased 1.6 percent. Prices for food away from home rose 2.5 percent, and those for food at home were up 0.9 percent.

Energy

The energy index, which includes prices for household and transportation fuels, increased 8.1 percent since February. The 2-month advance was led by a 16.8-percent jump in gasoline prices. Prices were also higher for utility (piped) gas service (5.1 percent) and electricity (0.1 percent).

Over the year, the energy index rose 2.0 percent, due mostly to higher utility (piped) gas service prices, up 12.1 percent. Prices were also higher for electricity (2.0 percent), while they decreased for gasoline (-0.4 percent) since April 2018.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.7 percent from February to April. Prices were higher for shelter (0.6 percent), apparel (4.6 percent), and recreation (2.4 percent), among others.

Since April 2018, the index for all items less food and energy increased 1.9 percent. Prices were higher for a number of items including shelter (2.7 percent), medical care (4.3 percent), and new and used motor vehicles (3.0 percent), while prices were lower for apparel, down 6.6 percent.

Table A. Philadelphia CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted

Month	2015		2016		2017		2018		2019
	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month
February	-0.2	-0.1	0.3	0.3	0.7	2.1	0.4	0.5	0.8	1.5
April	0.5	0.0	0.9	0.6	0.0	1.3	0.9	1.4	1.3	1.9
June	0.8	0.2	0.3	0.1	-0.3	0.7	0.2	1.9
August	-0.5	-0.3	-0.2	0.4	0.5	1.4	0.3	1.7
October	-0.3	-0.5	0.6	1.3	0.0	0.8	0.0	1.6
December	-0.6	-0.2	-0.1	1.7	-0.1	0.8	-0.7	1.0

The Consumer Price Index for June 2019 is scheduled to be released Thursday, July 11, 2019 at 8:30 am (ET).

Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index for Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington is published bi-monthly. 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 Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, Core Based Statistical Area includes Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties in Pennsylvania; Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, and Salem Counties in New Jersey; New Castle County in Delaware; and Cecil County in Maryland.

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, Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted) (not seasonally adjusted)

Expenditure category	Indexes				Percent change from
	Historical data	Feb. 2019	Mar. 2019	Apr. 2019	Apr. 2018	Feb. 2019	Mar. 2019
All items		253.218		256.528	1.9	1.3
All items (1967 = 100)		731.532		741.094
Food and beverages		235.043		236.304	1.3	0.5
Food		235.749		236.919	1.6	0.5
Food at home		238.846	243.526	240.148	0.9	0.5	-1.4
Cereals and bakery products		304.584		302.787	1.1	-0.6
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		258.503		262.254	-0.5	1.5
Dairy and related products		195.266		200.260	2.4	2.6
Fruits and vegetables		279.018		278.270	1.8	-0.3
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)		158.917		157.701	1.3	-0.8
Other food at home		218.663		220.611	0.7	0.9
Food away from home		225.953		226.917	2.5	0.4
Alcoholic beverages		222.365		224.915	-2.8	1.1
Housing		264.275		265.929	2.6	0.6
Shelter		328.794	331.279	330.829	2.7	0.6	-0.1
Rent of primary residence		306.506	306.540	307.635	2.0	0.4	0.4
Owners' equivalent rent of residences(2)		337.223	338.145	339.766	2.8	0.8	0.5
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(2)		337.223	338.145	339.766	2.8	0.8	0.5
Fuels and utilities		212.257		215.093	4.1	1.3
Household energy		175.639	179.211	178.508	4.1	1.6	-0.4
Energy services		184.312	188.897	188.038	5.8	2.0	-0.5
Electricity		181.789	181.396	181.901	2.0	0.1	0.3
Utility (piped) gas service		176.566	188.470	185.581	12.1	5.1	-1.5
Household furnishings and operations		115.193		114.774	-0.3	-0.4
Apparel		104.010		108.752	-6.6	4.6
Transportation		207.249		215.394	0.3	3.9
Private transportation		206.467		215.354	0.8	4.3
New and used motor vehicles(3)		98.734		98.846	3.0	0.1
New vehicles(1)		180.018		178.296	0.9	-1.0
Used cars and trucks(1)		256.566		259.471	1.0	1.1
Motor fuel		224.619	241.039	261.622	-0.4	16.5	8.5
Gasoline (all types)		220.864	237.266	258.018	-0.4	16.8	8.7
Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)		217.573	234.103	255.036	-0.5	17.2	8.9
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)		227.762	242.678	262.181	0.4	15.1	8.0
Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)		226.463	240.684	258.470	0.4	14.1	7.4
Motor vehicle insurance(1)		727.508		724.276	-3.7	-0.4
Medical care		539.094		539.820	4.3	0.1
Recreation(3)		120.123		123.000	3.0	2.4
Education and communication(3)		131.333		131.900	1.4	0.4
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)		1,038.607		1,038.607	1.0	0.0
Other goods and services		544.259		558.096	1.9	2.5
Commodity and service group
Commodities		177.728		182.735	0.0	2.8
Commodities less food and beverages		146.109		152.060	-0.6	4.1
Nondurables less food and beverages		185.860		197.369	-1.8	6.2
Durables		102.493		103.368	1.4	0.9
Services		329.480		331.490	2.7	0.6
Special aggregate indexes
All items less shelter		228.308		232.159	1.4	1.7
All items less medical care		241.139		244.575	1.6	1.4
Commodities less food		148.949		154.873	-0.7	4.0
Nondurables		211.515		218.903	-0.4	3.5
Nondurables less food		188.066		199.208	-1.9	5.9
Services less rent of shelter(2)		337.571		339.571	2.7	0.6
Services less medical care services		314.022		316.139	2.6	0.7
Energy		192.989	201.356	208.636	2.0	8.1	3.6
All items less energy		261.833		263.697	1.8	0.7
All items less food and energy		268.870		270.859	1.9	0.7
Footnotes (1) Indexes on a December 1977=100 base (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.