Prices in the Northeast Region, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), rose 0.2 percent in August, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that the rise was primarily due to increases in the shelter and apparel indexes. These contributed to the 0.5-percent increase in the all items less food and energy index. The food index was also up over the month (0.1 percent) and the energy index tempered the overall increase as it declined 2.0 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 Northeast all items CPI-U index increased 3.4 percent, mainly because of a 6.3-percent rise in the shelter index within the all items less food and energy index (up 4.0 percent). (See chart 1.) Food prices rose 2.2 percent, the same as last month. Energy prices decreased 1.3 percent, mostly due to a decline in gasoline prices. (See table 1.) 

  

View Chart Data

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

Month	All items	All items less food and energy
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
Jun 2024	3.8	4.3
Jul 2024	3.6	3.9
Aug 2024	3.4	4.0

In August, the food index was up 0.1 percent over the month, mainly driven by a 0.2-percent increase in prices for food away from home. (See table 1.) The food at home index remained unchanged over the month. The meats, poultry, fish, and eggs index was up 1.8 percent (the largest index increase since May 2022), mostly due to price increases for chicken and eggs. Prices for nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials decreased 1.8 percent, partially because of lower prices for coffee. The other food at home index also declined, down 0.6 percent.

From August 2023 to August 2024, the food index increased 2.2 percent as the food away from home index advanced 4.2 percent. Prices for food at home were up 1.0 percent, led by the meats, poultry, fish, and eggs index (up 4.1 percent—the fifth consecutive month of rising increases). The nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials index was up 2.0 percent over the year.

The energy index decreased 2.0 percent over the month (the first index decline in 2024), mostly due to a 2.5-percent decrease in prices for gasoline. The electricity index was down 1.1 percent. The utility (piped) gas service index declined 2.3 percent, and fuel oil prices also decreased.

Over the year, energy prices were down 1.3 percent, predominantly due to the gasoline index (down 8.0 percent, the largest index decline since last August). The fuel oil index also decreased. Prices for electricity increased 7.9 percent over the year as utility (piped) gas service prices rose 1.8 percent.

The index for all items less food and energy was up 0.5 percent in August after a 0.1-percent decline in July. This was largely due to a 0.6-percent increase in the shelter index. Within shelter, the owners’ equivalent rent of residences index was also up 0.6 percent, and the rent of primary residence index rose 0.7 percent. The apparel index also contributed to the overall rise as it advanced 2.8 percent over the month. The 0.5-percent increase in the education and communication index was led by a 0.9-percent uptick in prices for tuition, other school fees, and childcare.

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy was up 4.0 percent, mainly because of the 6.3-percent rise in the shelter index. Within shelter, the owners’ equivalent rent of residences index was up 6.4 percent, and the rent of primary residence index was up 5.9 percent. The medical care index was up 2.6 percent over the year, as prices rose for medical care services (up 2.0 percent) and medical care commodities (up 5.5 percent). Two indexes declined over the year: new and used motor vehicles (down 3.7 percent; the fifth consecutive month of decreases) and apparel (down 1.1 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 0.3 percent. The CPI-U for the New England division increased 0.2 percent.

Over the year, the all items index rose 3.4 percent in the Middle Atlantic division and 3.3 percent in the New England division. (See table B.)

The September Consumer Price Index for the Northeast Region is scheduled to be released on October 10, 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	Jun. 2024	Jul. 2024	Aug. 2024	Aug. 2023	Jun. 2024	Jul. 2024
All items		325.271	325.339	326.140	3.4	0.3	0.2
All items (December 1977 = 100)		512.202	512.309	513.571
Food and beverages		329.007	329.749	329.911	2.1	0.3	0.0
Food		331.469	332.234	332.435	2.2	0.3	0.1
Food at home		307.891	309.000	308.935	1.0	0.3	0.0
Cereals and bakery products		386.874	385.818	387.374	0.0	0.1	0.4
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		313.613	313.213	318.729	4.1	1.6	1.8
Dairy and related products		276.169	279.924	279.124	0.7	1.1	-0.3
Fruits and vegetables		347.943	353.095	352.107	-0.1	1.2	-0.3
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials		221.119	225.084	221.129	2.0	0.0	-1.8
Other food at home		282.135	280.052	278.451	-0.3	-1.3	-0.6
Food away from home		373.582	373.682	374.390	4.2	0.2	0.2
Alcoholic beverages		295.121	295.550	295.188	0.7	0.0	-0.1
Housing		353.688	354.777	355.938	5.5	0.6	0.3
Shelter		436.491	437.068	439.750	6.3	0.7	0.6
Rent of primary residence		436.003	438.034	441.048	5.9	1.2	0.7
Owners' equivalent rent of residences(1)		451.832	453.685	456.323	6.4	1.0	0.6
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(1)		451.377	453.220	455.868	6.4	1.0	0.6
Fuels and utilities		298.760	302.989	299.076	3.6	0.1	-1.3
Household energy		266.665	271.118	266.603	3.7	0.0	-1.7
Energy services		264.900	269.198	265.459	6.3	0.2	-1.4
Electricity		282.480	288.277	285.238	7.9	1.0	-1.1
Utility (piped) gas service		211.964	213.020	208.168	1.8	-1.8	-2.3
Household furnishings and operations		145.986	147.046	146.292	1.3	0.2	-0.5
Apparel		134.081	130.491	134.137	-1.1	0.0	2.8
Transportation		267.276	267.463	267.101	1.0	-0.1	-0.1
Private transportation		266.037	267.701	267.717	1.1	0.6	0.0
New and used motor vehicles(2)		124.559	124.986	125.016	-3.7	0.4	0.0
New vehicles		174.977	174.967	174.634	-0.5	-0.2	-0.2
New cars(3)		164.957	164.696	164.462	-0.8	-0.3	-0.1
Used cars and trucks		193.788	192.432	190.911	-9.0	-1.5	-0.8
Motor fuel		302.221	303.288	295.782	-8.0	-2.1	-2.5
Gasoline (all types)		301.867	302.970	295.432	-8.0	-2.1	-2.5
Gasoline, unleaded regular(3)		296.618	297.770	289.880	-8.5	-2.3	-2.6
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(3)(4)		330.810	331.681	325.231	-5.9	-1.7	-1.9
Gasoline, unleaded premium(3)		327.141	327.972	322.489	-4.9	-1.4	-1.7
Medical care		578.651	572.336	573.346	2.6	-0.9	0.2
Medical care commodities		425.037	424.001	423.427	5.5	-0.4	-0.1
Medical care services		623.580	615.631	617.137	2.0	-1.0	0.2
Professional services		425.588	425.016	425.014	-2.2	-0.1	0.0
Recreation(2)		143.728	142.794	142.980	2.4	-0.5	0.1
Education and communication(2)		155.197	155.599	156.370	1.0	0.8	0.5
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(5)		1,414.764	1,422.147	1,434.313	2.0	1.4	0.9
Other goods and services		607.588	610.227	606.702	2.9	-0.1	-0.6
Commodity and service group
Commodities		229.461	229.201	229.046	-0.5	-0.2	-0.1
Commodities less food and beverages		177.957	177.303	177.027	-2.3	-0.5	-0.2
Nondurables less food and beverages		230.342	228.745	228.710	-2.1	-0.7	0.0
Durables		120.849	120.881	120.490	-2.5	-0.3	-0.3
Services		417.230	417.612	419.327	5.5	0.5	0.4
Special aggregate indexes
All items less shelter		286.376	286.252	286.349	1.8	0.0	0.0
All items less medical care		314.159	314.513	315.305	3.5	0.4	0.3
Commodities less food		182.239	181.611	181.332	-2.2	-0.5	-0.2
Nondurables		279.062	278.609	278.671	0.3	-0.1	0.0
Nondurables less food		234.122	232.653	232.598	-1.9	-0.7	0.0
Services less rent of shelter(1)		409.225	409.397	410.055	4.5	0.2	0.2
Services less medical care services		403.031	403.982	405.710	5.9	0.7	0.4
Energy		282.219	285.253	279.467	-1.3	-1.0	-2.0
All items less energy		333.307	333.142	334.475	3.8	0.4	0.4
All items less food and energy		335.745	335.415	336.956	4.0	0.4	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.