Prices in the Northeast Region, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), increased by 0.2 percent in April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that the April increase was due to a 0.3-percent rise in the all items less food and energy index which was largely the result of higher shelter prices. The food index also rose 0.2 percent while the energy index decreased 0.6 percent due to lower household energy prices. (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 index increased 3.8 percent, mainly due to a 4.2-percent rise in the all items less food and energy index which was also led by increases within the shelter component. (See chart 1 and table A.) The food index continued moderating, rising only 7.4 percent (down from a peak of 10.3 percent in October), while the energy index decreased 5.7 percent, down for the second consecutive month after 25 months of over-the-year increases which peaked at 44.2 percent in June 2022. (See table 1.)

  

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Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in CPI-U, Northeast region, April 2020–April 2023

Month	All items	All items less food and energy
Apr 2020	0.8	1.5
May 2020	0.6	1.4
Jun 2020	0.8	1.3
Jul 2020	1.1	1.6
Aug 2020	1.1	1.6
Sep 2020	1.2	1.5
Oct 2020	1.1	1.5
Nov 2020	1.1	1.5
Dec 2020	1.4	1.6
Jan 2021	1.1	1.1
Feb 2021	1.2	0.8
Mar 2021	2.1	1.3
Apr 2021	3.3	2.5
May 2021	3.9	3.0
Jun 2021	4.6	3.9
Jul 2021	4.3	3.5
Aug 2021	4.4	3.2
Sep 2021	4.6	3.2
Oct 2021	5.4	3.7
Nov 2021	6.0	4.1
Dec 2021	5.9	4.3
Jan 2022	6.3	4.6
Feb 2022	6.6	5.0
Mar 2022	7.3	5.0
Apr 2022	7.2	4.9
May 2022	7.5	4.6
Jun 2022	7.6	4.4
Jul 2022	7.3	4.3
Aug 2022	7.4	5.0
Sep 2022	7.2	5.4
Oct 2022	6.9	5.2
Nov 2022	6.4	4.7
Dec 2022	6.1	4.8
Jan 2023	6.0	4.9
Feb 2023	5.9	5.1
Mar 2023	4.3	4.5
Apr 2023	3.8	4.2

In April, the food index rose 0.2 percent, as prices for food away from home increased 0.3 percent and prices for food at home were up 0.1 percent. (See table 1.) Within the food at home category, the fruits and vegetables index advanced 1.3 percent after falling 2.7 percent last month. Prices for cereals and bakery products were up 0.6 percent and prices for the other food at home index rose 0.2 percent. The remaining grocery categories partially offset these increases — nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials prices were down 1.3 percent, the largest drop since November 2020. The index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs decreased 0.3 percent and dairy and related products declined 0.5 percent over the month, both continuing declines from March.

From April 2022 to April 2023, the food index increased 7.4 percent while the food at home index rose 7.0 percent, both continuing to moderate from their peaks last year to the smallest increases in over a year. Within food at home, prices for the other food at home category increased 10.2 percent and cereals and bakery products prices were up 13.0 percent. The rest of the grocery categories increased, but at a slower pace than in recent months. The food away from home index was up 8.1 percent, about the same as last month.

The energy index decreased 0.6 percent over the month as all energy categories declined except for gasoline. The utility (piped) gas service index was down 5.8 percent; the index has decreased each month in 2023. Prices for electricity were down 2.5 percent, the third decline in a row, and fuel oil also declined. The gasoline index was up 4.5 percent in April, offsetting much of the decrease in household energy, and was the largest increase since November 2022 although gasoline prices dropped in 7 of the last 12 months.

Energy prices continued to decline over the year, down 5.7 percent; last month’s 5.0-percent decrease was the first since January 2021. The April-to-April decline was mainly due to gasoline, down 13.8 percent. Fuel oil prices also dropped, and the utility (piped) gas service index was down 0.9 percent — the first decline since December 2020. Slightly offsetting the overall energy index downward movement was a 9.4-percent increase in prices for electricity, the first single-digit increase in that index since February 2022; substantial over-the-year increases peaked in February 2023 at 44.2 percent.

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.3 percent in April, mainly due to a 0.5-percent rise in the shelter index. Within shelter, the owners’ equivalent rent of residences index was up 0.5 percent, rent of primary residence was up 0.4 percent, and lodging away from home also increased. A 1.2-percent increase in the new and used motor vehicles index also contributed to the overall rise, as prices for used cars and trucks advanced 4.7 percent (the largest increase since June 2021) and new vehicles rose 0.4 percent. There were major categories that had declining prices that counteracted some of the overall increase. Apparel prices dropped 2.6 percent (in the last 10 years, the apparel index decreased 8 out of 10 times in April). The education and communication index declined 0.2 percent and the medical care index was down 0.1 percent as prices for medical care services decreased 0.3 percent over the month.

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy was up 4.2 percent, primarily because of the 6.3-percent increase in the shelter index, about the same as the previous 2 months. In the shelter category, owners’ equivalent rent of residences rose 6.1 percent and rent of primary residence advanced 6.9 percent as both indexes have continued to steadily increase over the past year. The only major index category to decrease over the year was medical care, down a historic 1.4 percent, which is the largest decrease since the index began in 1978. The medical care index decline was due to a 2.4 percent decrease in the medical care services index, now the series low in that index after last month’s record 1.1 percent decline.

Additional price indexes are available for the two divisions of the Northeast. Over the month, the all items CPI-U index for the New England division increased by 0.3 percent. For the Middle Atlantic division, the all items CPI-U index increased 0.2 percent over the month.

Over the year, the all items index advanced 3.9 percent in the Middle Atlantic division and 3.8 percent in the New England division. (See table B.)

The May 2023 Consumer Price Index for the Northeast Region is scheduled to be released on June 13, 2023.

The Consumer Price Index for the Northeast Region is published 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 U.S. population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers approximately 29 percent of the total U.S. 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, 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 6,000 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; for most of the CPI-U the reference base is 1982-84 equals 100. An increase of 7 percent from the reference base, for example, is shown as 107.000.  Alternatively, that relationship can also be expressed as the price of a base period market basket of goods and services rising from $100 to $107. For further details see the CPI home page on the internet at www.bls.gov/cpi and the CPI section of the BLS Handbook of Methods 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.

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 individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

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	Feb. 2023	Mar. 2023	Apr. 2023	Apr. 2022	Feb. 2023	Mar. 2023
All items		311.986	311.243	311.848	3.8	0.0	0.2
All items (December 1977 = 100)		491.282	490.113	491.065
Food and beverages		321.002	321.324	321.924	7.3	0.3	0.2
Food		323.444	323.698	324.220	7.4	0.2	0.2
Food at home		306.838	306.434	306.734	7.0	0.0	0.1
Cereals and bakery products		378.465	382.573	384.795	13.0	1.7	0.6
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		313.306	311.801	310.927	3.3	-0.8	-0.3
Dairy and related products		282.111	281.180	279.655	6.7	-0.9	-0.5
Fruits and vegetables		361.145	351.421	356.141	1.6	-1.4	1.3
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials		215.541	216.027	213.149	9.3	-1.1	-1.3
Other food at home		275.825	279.136	279.586	10.2	1.4	0.2
Food away from home		350.401	352.173	353.192	8.1	0.8	0.3
Alcoholic beverages		287.371	288.614	290.272	5.5	1.0	0.6
Housing		333.577	333.279	333.309	5.7	-0.1	0.0
Shelter		402.811	404.754	406.734	6.3	1.0	0.5
Rent of primary residence		406.089	407.727	409.454	6.9	0.8	0.4
Owners' equivalent rent of residences(1)		416.140	417.564	419.513	6.1	0.8	0.5
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(1)		415.759	417.206	419.161	6.1	0.8	0.5
Fuels and utilities		312.195	301.409	292.031	2.3	-6.5	-3.1
Household energy		282.706	271.169	261.072	1.4	-7.7	-3.7
Energy services		277.196	265.174	255.735	5.9	-7.7	-3.6
Electricity		277.558	269.856	263.170	9.4	-5.2	-2.5
Utility (piped) gas service		256.212	237.091	223.256	-0.9	-12.9	-5.8
Household furnishings and operations		145.747	144.868	144.516	4.5	-0.8	-0.2
Apparel		136.335	138.005	134.380	3.6	-1.4	-2.6
Transportation		252.783	251.864	256.154	0.2	1.3	1.7
Private transportation		250.860	249.439	253.727	0.1	1.1	1.7
New and used motor vehicles(2)		124.621	124.647	126.095	1.0	1.2	1.2
New vehicles		172.869	173.452	174.076	5.8	0.7	0.4
New cars(3)		164.302	164.982	165.168	5.5	0.5	0.1
Used cars and trucks		193.092	194.785	203.997	-6.4	5.6	4.7
Motor fuel		293.390	287.636	300.236	-14.0	2.3	4.4
Gasoline (all types)		291.823	286.289	299.268	-13.8	2.6	4.5
Gasoline, unleaded regular(3)		286.789	281.283	294.705	-14.5	2.8	4.8
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(3)(4)		318.903	313.001	323.773	-11.6	1.5	3.4
Gasoline, unleaded premium(3)		315.196	309.669	319.443	-9.0	1.3	3.2
Medical care		575.275	561.165	560.352	-1.4	-2.6	-0.1
Medical care commodities		396.336	397.262	400.255	3.6	1.0	0.8
Medical care services		627.903	609.273	607.307	-2.4	-3.3	-0.3
Professional services		432.476	430.906	430.162	0.4	-0.5	-0.2
Recreation(2)		138.639	138.262	138.529	1.6	-0.1	0.2
Education and communication(2)		154.904	154.764	154.437	1.3	-0.3	-0.2
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(5)		1,379.692	1,379.610	1,379.770	2.8	0.0	0.0
Other goods and services		580.957	586.037	587.742	6.4	1.2	0.3
Commodity and service group
Commodities		227.225	227.286	227.857	2.0	0.3	0.3
Commodities less food and beverages		178.177	178.130	178.661	-1.3	0.3	0.3
Nondurables less food and beverages		227.953	227.294	227.633	-2.8	-0.1	0.1
Durables		122.693	123.046	123.631	0.2	0.8	0.5
Services		393.427	391.922	392.562	5.0	-0.2	0.2
Special aggregate indexes
All items less shelter		280.716	278.942	279.029	2.6	-0.6	0.0
All items less medical care		300.392	300.259	300.930	4.3	0.2	0.2
Commodities less food		182.244	182.231	182.797	-1.1	0.3	0.3
Nondurables		273.924	273.743	274.211	2.7	0.1	0.2
Nondurables less food		231.412	230.870	231.290	-2.2	-0.1	0.2
Services less rent of shelter(1)		396.434	390.861	389.951	3.3	-1.6	-0.2
Services less medical care services		377.232	376.926	377.749	5.8	0.1	0.2
Energy		288.596	279.181	277.641	-5.7	-3.8	-0.6
All items less energy		318.113	318.113	318.911	4.6	0.3	0.3
All items less food and energy		319.196	319.151	320.004	4.2	0.3	0.3
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.