The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington area rose 1.0 percent from March to May, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Charlene Peiffer noted that the food index rose 0.6 percent and the energy index increased 5.1 percent over the bi-monthly period. The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.7 percent from March to May. Among the indexes within the all items less food and energy category, prices were higher for shelter and medical care. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

Over the past 12 months, the Minneapolis all items CPI-U increased 2.3 percent. (See table A.) The food index rose 1.5 percent while the energy index declined 1.4 percent from May 2018 to May 2019. The index for all items less food and energy rose 2.7 percent over the year. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices increased 0.6 percent from March to May. Of the two components within the food index, prices for food at home (groceries) fell 0.2 percent and prices for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) increased 1.6 percent over the bi-monthly period.

Over the year, food prices in the Minneapolis area were up 1.5 percent. Prices for groceries increased 0.3 percent, while food away from home prices rose 2.9 percent from May 2018.

Energy

The energy index for Minneapolis was 5.1 percent higher from March to May. Gasoline prices increased 9.3 percent for the bi-monthly period. Electricity costs edged up 0.1 percent while utility (piped) gas service costs were down 0.4 percent during the same period.

From May 2018 to May 2019, overall energy prices declined 1.4 percent. Utility (piped) gas service costs decreased 6.3 percent and gasoline prices declined 0.2 percent over the year. Electricity costs fell 0.8 percent from May 2018.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.7 percent from March to May. Among the index’s components, prices were higher for shelter (0.9 percent) and medical care (1.3 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 2.7 percent. Increases in the indexes for shelter (4.4 percent) and medical care (4.4 percent) were contributing factors.

Table A. Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI, CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted

Month	2018		2019
	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month
January	0.3		0.4	1.4
March	0.5		1.4	2.3
May	1.0		1.0	2.3
July	0.3
September	0.3
November	-1.2	1.3

The July 2019 Consumer Price Index for Minneapolis is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, August 13, 2019.

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 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 Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI, Core Based Statistical Area covered in this release is comprised of Anoka, Carver, Chisago, Dakota, Hennepin, Isanti, LeSueur, Mille Lacs, Ramsey, Scott, Sherburne, Sibley, Washington, and Wright Counties and Pierce and St. Croix Counties in Wisconsin.

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
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	Mar. 2019	Apr. 2019	May 2019	May 2018	Mar. 2019	Apr. 2019
Expenditure category
All items	248.706	-	251.171	2.3	1.0	-
All items (1967=100)	781.566	-	789.313	-	-	-
Food and beverages	282.890	-	284.495	1.5	0.6	-
Food	271.986	-	273.601	1.5	0.6	-
Food at home	248.732	245.550	248.120	0.3	-0.2	1.0
Cereals and bakery products	272.776	-	278.936	-1.0	2.3	-
Meats, poultry, fish and eggs	266.378	-	263.219	0.2	-1.2	-
Dairy and related products	271.639	-	270.894	1.2	-0.3	-
Fruits and vegetables	341.751	-	345.086	1.0	1.0	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)	158.614	-	159.576	5.4	0.6	-
Other food at home	197.957	-	194.228	-1.7	-1.9	-
Food away from home	305.142	-	310.005	2.9	1.6	-
Alcoholic beverages	377.210	-	378.216	1.5	0.3	-
Housing	234.189	-	236.215	3.8	0.9	-
Shelter	277.110	278.059	279.731	4.4	0.9	0.6
Rent of primary residence(2)	282.177	282.734	283.835	4.2	0.6	0.4
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)(3)	289.701	290.662	292.055	4.1	0.8	0.5
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)(3)	289.701	290.662	292.055	4.1	0.8	0.5
Fuels and utilities	211.836	-	211.074	-1.7	-0.4	-
Household energy	188.164	181.139	187.286	-3.1	-0.5	3.4
Energy services(2)	191.134	183.866	190.977	-2.9	-0.1	3.9
Electricity(2)	264.116	257.338	264.348	-0.8	0.1	2.7
Utility (piped) gas service(2)	128.863	121.227	128.381	-6.3	-0.4	5.9
Household furnishings and operations	120.235	-	121.715	4.3	1.2	-
Apparel	137.334	-	141.678	4.3	3.2	-
Transportation	202.537	-	206.247	-0.5	1.8	-
Private transportation	188.052	-	190.931	0.4	1.5	-
New and used motor vehicles(4)	92.889	-	90.877	-0.3	-2.2	-
New vehicles(1)	159.304	-	155.406	-0.3	-2.4	-
Used cars and trucks(1)	276.767	-	271.604	-0.5	-1.9	-
Motor fuel	208.698	226.933	228.023	-0.2	9.3	0.5
Gasoline (all types)	209.139	227.591	228.659	-0.2	9.3	0.5
Gasoline, unleaded regular(5)	209.369	227.908	229.099	-0.4	9.4	0.5
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(5)(6)	215.067	233.574	233.425	-0.3	8.5	-0.1
Gasoline, unleaded premium(5)	259.679	281.955	282.522	1.7	8.8	0.2
Motor vehicle insurance(1)	499.357	-	499.357	-0.1	0.0	-
Medical care	553.468	-	560.402	4.4	1.3	-
Recreation(4)	130.518	-	130.425	-0.5	-0.1	-
Education and communication(4)	138.644	-	139.258	0.6	0.4	-
Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)	1,130.940	-	1,130.940	0.2	0.0	-
Other goods and services	370.995	-	374.613	1.0	1.0	-
Commodity and service group
All items	248.706	-	251.171	2.3	1.0	-
Commodities	187.600	-	190.243	1.1	1.4	-
Commodities less food and beverages	145.416	-	148.167	0.9	1.9	-
Nondurables less food and beverages	191.768	-	199.749	1.4	4.2	-
Durables	105.528	-	104.667	0.3	-0.8	-
Services	303.050	-	305.344	2.9	0.8	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	234.990	-	237.253	2.1	1.0	-
All items less shelter	237.613	-	240.023	1.2	1.0	-
Commodities less food	153.662	-	156.458	0.9	1.8	-
Nondurables	234.615	-	240.051	1.5	2.3	-
Nondurables less food	204.385	-	212.268	1.4	3.9	-
Services less rent of shelter(3)	345.931	-	347.800	1.3	0.5	-
Services less medical care services	280.418	-	282.439	2.6	0.7	-
Energy	201.506	208.427	211.831	-1.4	5.1	1.6
All items less energy	257.366	-	259.181	2.5	0.7	-
All items less food and energy	255.296	-	257.138	2.7	0.7	-
Footnotes (1) Index on an April 1978=100 base. (2) This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means estimator. (3) Index on a December 1982=100 base. (4) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (5) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (6) Index on a December 1993=100 base.
- Data not available. Note: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date. Data not seasonally adjusted.