Gasoline prices averaged $1.800 per gallon in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn area in May 2020, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Acting Regional Commissioner Julie Wilson noted that area gasoline prices were $1.050 lower compared to a year ago in May when they averaged $2.850 per gallon. Detroit area households paid an average of 17.2 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity in May 2020, more than the 15.1 cents paid in May 2019. In May 2020, the average cost of utility (piped) gas was 84.6 cents per therm, less than the average price of 87.1 cents per therm a year earlier. (Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year-analysis is used throughout.)

At $1.800 per gallon in May 2020, costs for gasoline in the Detroit area were 14.6 cents lower than the national average of $1.946 per gallon. Over the previous four years in May (2016-2019) local area gasoline costs have ranged from 11.3 cents lower to 6.3 cents higher than the national average. (See chart 1.)

The 17.2 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) that Detroit area households paid for electricity in May 2020 was 28.4 percent more than the nationwide average cost of 13.4 cents per kWh. In the previous four years (2016-2019) in May, Detroit area electricity costs exceeded the national average, ranging from 11.0 percent to 17.5 percent more. (See chart 2.)

Prices paid by Detroit area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, were 84.6 cents per therm in May 2020, 18.4 percent below the national average of $1.037 per therm. In the previous four years (2016-2019) in May, Detroit area utility (piped) gas costs were lower than the national average, ranging from 15.8 percent to 24.0 percent less. (See chart 3.)

The Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI, core based statistical area covered in this release is comprised of Lapeer, Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, St. Clair, and Wayne Counties in Michigan.

Historical average energy prices for the U.S. and select metropolitan areas are available at www.bls.gov/regions/midwest/data/averageenergyprices_selectedareas_table.htm.

The Consumer Price Index for June 2020 is scheduled to be released Tuesday, July 14, 2020.

Technical Note

Average prices are estimated from Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for selected commodity series to support the research and analytic needs of CPI data users. Average prices for electricity, utility (piped) gas, and gasoline are published monthly for the U.S. city average, the 4 regions, 9 divisions, 2 population size classes, 8 region/size-class cross-classifications, and the 23 largest local index areas. For electricity, average prices per kilowatt-hour (kWh) are published. For utility (piped) gas, average prices per therm are published. For gasoline, the average price per gallon is published. Average prices for commonly available grades of gasoline are published as well as the average price across all grades.

All eligible prices are converted to a price per normalized quantity. These prices are then used to estimate a price for a defined fixed quantity.  The average price per kilowatt-hour represents the total bill divided by the kilowatt-hour usage. The total bill is the sum of all items applicable to all consumers appearing on an electricity bill including, but not limited to, variable rates per kWh, fixed costs, taxes, surcharges, and credits. This calculation also applies to the average price per therm for utility (piped) gas.

Information from this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200, Federal Relay Services: 800-877-8339.

Table 1. Average prices for gasoline, electricity, and utility (piped) gas, Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI, and the United States, May 2019 – May 2020, not seasonally adjusted

Year and month	Gasoline per gallon		Electricity per kWh		Utility (piped) gas per therm
	Detroit area	United States	Detroit area	United States	Detroit area	United States
2019
May	$2.850	$2.963	$0.151	$0.136	$0.871	$1.035
June	2.746	2.814	0.158	0.139	0.874	1.035
July	2.918	2.836	0.173	0.140	0.863	1.029
August	2.776	2.716	0.172	0.139	0.882	1.034
September	2.724	2.694	0.173	0.139	0.860	1.019
October	2.637	2.741	0.171	0.136	0.896	1.041
November	2.541	2.687	–	0.133	0.875	1.058
December	2.574	2.652	0.165	0.133	0.879	1.057
2020
January	2.569	2.631	0.163	0.134	0.886	1.066
February	2.382	2.530	0.164	0.134	0.877	1.050
March	2.117	2.334	0.164	0.134	0.835	1.034
April	1.548	1.946	0.164	0.133	0.831	1.028
May	1.800	1.946	0.172	0.134	0.846	1.037
Note: Dash (–) indicates no data available.