Prices in the Northeast Region, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), were up 0.4 percent in May, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that the rise was predominantly due to the all items less food and energy index (up 0.5 percent), and within that, a 0.9-percent rise in prices for shelter. The energy index was up 0.4 percent while the food index decreased 0.1 percent over the month. (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 3.9 percent. (See chart 1.) The May advance was primarily due to a 4.3-percent rise in the all items less food and energy index (which has been higher than the all items index since March 2023). The food index rose 2.1 percent and the energy index increased 3.4 percent over the year. (See table 1.) 

  

View Chart Data

Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in CPI-U, Northeast region, May 2021–May 2024

Month	All items	All items less food and energy
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
May 2023	3.1	4.3
Jun 2023	2.2	3.8
Jul 2023	2.6	4.0
Aug 2023	2.8	3.7
Sep 2023	3.0	3.5
Oct 2023	2.7	3.4
Nov 2023	2.5	3.5
Dec 2023	2.6	3.5
Jan 2024	2.5	3.5
Feb 2024	2.4	3.2
Mar 2024	3.4	4.0
Apr 2024	3.6	4.1
May 2024	3.9	4.3

In May, the food index was down 0.1 percent over the month, mainly driven by a 0.6-percent decline in prices for food at home (the largest decline in that index since July 2020). (See table 1.) Nearly all grocery categories had price declines this month, led by the cereals and bakery products index (down 1.2 percent), the other food at home index (down 0.6 percent), and the fruits and vegetables index (down 0.7 percent). The only category to rise was nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials, up 0.1 percent. The index for food away from home also rose, up 0.7 percent.

From May 2023 to May 2024, the food index increased 2.1 percent as the food away from home index advanced 4.9 percent (up from 4.6 percent in April). Prices for food at home were up 0.7 percent as the meats, poultry, fish, and eggs index (up 1.9 percent), the nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials index (up 2.9 percent), and the other food at home index (up 1.0 percent) rose. Some grocery indexes tempered the rise: the fruits and vegetables index was down 1.3 percent (the largest decline in the index since March 2020) and the dairy and related products index was down 0.6 percent.

The energy index increased 0.4 percent over the month, primarily due to a 2.7-percent increase in prices for gasoline. The electricity index also rose, up 0.3 percent. The utility (piped) gas service index declined 4.0 percent and fuel oil was also down in May.

Over the year, energy prices were up 3.4 percent, up from 1.2 percent in April. This was mainly due to a 5.6-percent increase in the electricity index, the largest index increase since July 2023. The gasoline index rose 2.2 percent and the fuel oil index also increased. The utility (piped) gas service index was down 1.0 percent over the year.

The index for all items less food and energy was up 0.5 percent in May, led by a 0.9-percent rise in the shelter index—the largest index increase since July 2008—and within shelter, the owners’ equivalent rent of residences index (up 1.1 percent, the largest index rise since March 1992). Rent of primary residence was up 0.5 percent. Prices for medical care rose 1.1 percent as the medical care services index increased 1.0 percent and the medical care commodities index was up 1.7 percent. The recreation index increased 0.7 percent. A few index components declined over the month, including the apparel index (down 0.8 percent) and the household furnishings and operations index (down 0.5 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy was up 4.3 percent, mainly due to a 6.4-percent increase in the shelter index and a 6.8-percent rise in the owners’ equivalent rent of residences index. The rent of primary residence index increased 5.7 percent. The medical care index had a 3.1-percent increase, with the medical care services index up 2.6 percent and the medical care commodities index up 5.5 percent. The new and used motor vehicles index was down 1.5 percent over the year (the largest index decline since October 2017) and within the index, prices for used cars and trucks decreased 8.5 percent.

Additional price indexes are available for the two divisions of the Northeast. Over the month, the all items CPI-U index for the Middle Atlantic division was up 0.5 percent. The CPI-U for the New England division rose 0.3 percent.

Over the year, the all items index rose 4.0 percent in the Middle Atlantic division and 3.8 percent in the New England division. (See table B.)

The June 2024 Consumer Price Index for the Northeast Region is scheduled to be released on July 11, 2024.

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	Mar. 2024	Apr. 2024	May 2024	May 2023	Mar. 2024	Apr. 2024
All items		321.741	323.035	324.439	3.9	0.8	0.4
All items (December 1977 = 100)		506.645	508.682	510.892
Food and beverages		327.161	328.442	328.156	2.0	0.3	-0.1
Food		329.700	331.143	330.775	2.1	0.3	-0.1
Food at home		307.985	309.571	307.711	0.7	-0.1	-0.6
Cereals and bakery products		385.043	389.766	384.960	-0.1	0.0	-1.2
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		310.715	313.236	311.825	1.9	0.4	-0.5
Dairy and related products		274.334	276.738	274.567	-0.6	0.1	-0.8
Fruits and vegetables		354.327	356.219	353.598	-1.3	-0.2	-0.7
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials		226.084	221.439	221.756	2.9	-1.9	0.1
Other food at home		279.385	282.218	280.595	1.0	0.4	-0.6
Food away from home		368.267	369.423	371.911	4.9	1.0	0.7
Alcoholic beverages		292.242	291.361	292.155	-0.1	0.0	0.3
Housing		348.586	349.128	351.041	5.5	0.7	0.5
Shelter		428.807	430.231	433.995	6.4	1.2	0.9
Rent of primary residence		430.137	431.822	433.802	5.7	0.9	0.5
Owners' equivalent rent of residences(1)		443.041	445.161	449.915	6.8	1.6	1.1
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(1)		442.589	444.709	449.465	6.8	1.6	1.1
Fuels and utilities		301.048	296.553	292.793	3.6	-2.7	-1.3
Household energy		269.460	264.545	260.512	3.8	-3.3	-1.5
Energy services		264.152	259.200	256.681	3.7	-2.8	-1.0
Electricity		276.287	271.038	271.782	5.6	-1.6	0.3
Utility (piped) gas service		221.949	217.923	209.180	-1.0	-5.8	-4.0
Household furnishings and operations		144.696	145.132	144.468	0.7	-0.2	-0.5
Apparel		137.397	135.494	134.425	-0.8	-2.2	-0.8
Transportation		261.965	267.790	269.628	4.0	2.9	0.7
Private transportation		260.322	265.932	268.333	4.7	3.1	0.9
New and used motor vehicles(2)		125.142	125.251	125.437	-1.5	0.2	0.1
New vehicles		174.742	174.973	174.923	0.1	0.1	0.0
New cars(3)		164.540	164.580	164.835	-0.6	0.2	0.2
Used cars and trucks		192.925	192.122	192.759	-8.5	-0.1	0.3
Motor fuel		286.761	302.214	310.281	2.1	8.2	2.7
Gasoline (all types)		285.969	301.658	309.881	2.2	8.4	2.7
Gasoline, unleaded regular(3)		280.617	296.679	304.903	2.1	8.7	2.8
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(3)(4)		314.144	328.534	337.743	2.9	7.5	2.8
Gasoline, unleaded premium(3)		312.090	325.528	333.583	3.2	6.9	2.5
Medical care		573.512	572.201	578.443	3.1	0.9	1.1
Medical care commodities		415.865	416.845	424.118	5.5	2.0	1.7
Medical care services		619.757	617.727	623.600	2.6	0.6	1.0
Professional services		428.332	425.509	425.472	-1.2	-0.7	0.0
Recreation(2)		141.669	141.671	142.716	2.9	0.7	0.7
Education and communication(2)		155.399	155.405	155.592	0.9	0.1	0.1
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(5)		1,410.245	1,410.503	1,413.099	2.0	0.2	0.2
Other goods and services		610.058	609.924	608.155	2.8	-0.3	-0.3
Commodity and service group
Commodities		228.379	229.362	229.520	0.6	0.5	0.1
Commodities less food and beverages		177.238	178.052	178.383	-0.4	0.6	0.2
Nondurables less food and beverages		229.285	231.110	231.943	1.6	1.2	0.4
Durables		120.441	120.504	120.472	-2.7	0.0	0.0
Services		411.357	412.950	415.545	5.7	1.0	0.6
Special aggregate indexes
All items less shelter		284.386	285.643	286.166	2.5	0.6	0.2
All items less medical care		310.700	312.111	313.299	4.0	0.8	0.4
Commodities less food		181.457	182.229	182.575	-0.4	0.6	0.2
Nondurables		277.617	279.178	279.463	1.8	0.7	0.1
Nondurables less food		232.953	234.607	235.437	1.4	1.1	0.4
Services less rent of shelter(1)		405.547	407.395	408.706	4.9	0.8	0.3
Services less medical care services		397.019	398.859	401.230	6.1	1.1	0.6
Energy		277.320	280.986	282.049	3.4	1.7	0.4
All items less energy		329.836	330.960	332.411	4.0	0.8	0.4
All items less food and energy		331.953	333.029	334.808	4.3	0.9	0.5
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.