Prices in the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), increased 0.4 percent for the two months ending in September 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Jason Palmer noted that the food index increased 1.2 percent, and the energy index declined 5.9 percent from July to September. The all items less food and energy index rose 0.8 percent over the past two months. Within the all items less food and energy category, prices were higher over the two-month period for apparel; household furnishings and operations; tuition, other school fees, and childcare; and recreation. The index for used cars and trucks was lower. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U increased 7.4 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) The index for all items less food and energy increased 5.3 percent over the year. Food prices rose 12.4 percent. Energy prices rose 24.4 percent, largely the result of an increase in the price of gasoline. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices rose 1.2 percent for the two months ending in September. Prices for food at home (groceries) rose 0.3 percent, as three of the six the major grocery store food group indexes increased over the two-month period. Categories increasing included other food at home (includes sugar, sweets, fats, and oils, for example), 1.5 percent; nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials, 1.4 percent; and cereals and bakery products, 0.4 percent. The index for dairy and related products fell 1.7 percent; fruits and vegetables declined 0.6 percent; and meats, poultry, fish, and eggs decreased 0.1 percent. Prices for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) increased 2.7 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices rose 12.4 percent. Prices for food at home increased 13.7 percent since a year ago. All six major grocery store food group indexes increased over the year. The index for other food at home increased 18.1 percent over the year and the index for fruits and vegetables rose 14.7 percent. Prices for food away from home increased 10.3 percent.

Energy

The energy index declined 5.9 percent for the two months ending in September. The decrease was mainly due to lower prices for gasoline (-17.6 percent). Prices for utility (piped) gas service increased 16.5 percent, and prices for electricity rose 1.2 percent for the same period.

Energy prices rose 24.4 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (23.1 percent). Prices paid for utility (piped) gas service rose 33.3 percent, and prices for electricity advanced 14.8 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.8 percent in the latest two-month period. Higher prices for apparel (6.0 percent); household furnishings and operations (2.0 percent); tuition, other school fees, and childcare (2.5 percent); and recreation (1.8 percent) were contributing factors.  These increases were only partially offset by a 5.1-percent decline in the index for used cars and trucks.

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy increased 5.3 percent. Components contributing to the increase included shelter (4.1 percent) and medical care (6.1 percent). Partly offsetting the increases was a price decrease in education and communication (-0.6 percent).

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		2020		2021		2022
	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month
January	0.3		0.4	1.4	0.6	3.0	0.4	1.6	0.7	7.2
March	0.5		1.4	2.3	-0.3	1.2	1.1	3.0	2.1	8.2
May	1.0		1.0	2.3	-0.1	0.0	1.4	4.6	1.9	8.7
July	0.3		0.3	2.2	-0.1	-0.3	1.7	6.5	1.2	8.2
September	0.3		-0.2	1.7	2.1	1.9	1.1	5.4	0.4	7.4
November	-1.2	1.3	-0.2	2.8	-0.4	1.7	1.0	6.9

The November 2022 Consumer Price Index for the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington area is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, December 13, 2022.

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 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, 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 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 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 in Minnesota; and Pierce and St. Croix Counties in Wisconsin.

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

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	Jul. 2022	Aug. 2022	Sep. 2022	Sep. 2021	Jul. 2022	Aug. 2022
Expenditure category
All items	289.265	-	290.325	7.4	0.4	-
All items (1967=100)	909.025	-	912.356	-	-	-
Food and beverages	343.401	-	347.394	11.6	1.2	-
Food	332.747	-	336.866	12.4	1.2	-
Food at home	306.316	307.733	307.310	13.7	0.3	-0.1
Cereals and bakery products	322.769	-	323.943	14.6	0.4	-
Meats, poultry, fish and eggs	337.321	-	337.012	7.3	-0.1	-
Dairy and related products	343.230	-	337.530	13.1	-1.7	-
Fruits and vegetables	419.442	-	416.927	14.7	-0.6	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)	183.893	-	186.542	13.4	1.4	-
Other food at home	245.700	-	249.329	18.1	1.5	-
Food away from home	366.060	-	376.058	10.3	2.7	-
Alcoholic beverages	422.267	-	423.725	3.3	0.3	-
Housing	271.014	-	274.227	6.5	1.2	-
Shelter	310.534	310.083	311.417	4.1	0.3	0.4
Rent of primary residence(2)	318.385	319.460	321.341	4.6	0.9	0.6
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)(3)	328.458	328.938	331.428	4.4	0.9	0.8
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)(3)	328.458	328.938	331.428	4.4	0.9	0.8
Fuels and utilities	295.289	-	314.210	20.4	6.4	-
Household energy	276.254	298.579	299.418	23.8	8.4	0.3
Energy services(2)	279.728	302.852	303.959	23.6	8.7	0.4
Electricity(2)	327.866	328.452	331.838	14.8	1.2	1.0
Utility (piped) gas service(2)	243.728	284.635	283.964	33.3	16.5	-0.2
Household furnishings and operations	145.606	-	148.504	9.5	2.0	-
Apparel	141.338	-	149.822	3.7	6.0	-
Transportation	264.117	-	254.111	13.3	-3.8	-
Private transportation	248.095	-	238.584	9.7	-3.8	-
New and used motor vehicles(4)	118.725	-	116.831	5.0	-1.6	-
New vehicles(1)	184.391	-	186.846	5.6	1.3	-
Used cars and trucks(1)	421.226	-	399.886	6.2	-5.1	-
Motor fuel	370.475	326.892	305.573	23.6	-17.5	-6.5
Gasoline (all types)	371.392	327.391	305.957	23.1	-17.6	-6.5
Gasoline, unleaded regular(5)	373.473	328.536	306.944	23.2	-17.8	-6.6
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(5)(6)	364.305	326.299	304.860	23.3	-16.3	-6.6
Gasoline, unleaded premium(5)	440.664	397.679	372.908	22.8	-15.4	-6.2
Medical care	631.176	-	635.806	6.1	0.7	-
Recreation(4)	131.251	-	133.666	0.3	1.8	-
Education and communication(4)	140.915	-	140.908	-0.6	0.0	-
Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)	1,176.457	-	1,205.653	2.3	2.5	-
Other goods and services	447.364	-	454.011	11.1	1.5	-
Commodity and service group
All items	289.265	-	290.325	7.4	0.4	-
Commodities	227.854	-	225.310	9.2	-1.1	-
Commodities less food and beverages	176.711	-	172.413	7.9	-2.4	-
Nondurables less food and beverages	243.188	-	233.274	11.7	-4.1	-
Durables	123.368	-	122.476	4.4	-0.7	-
Services	342.694	-	347.384	6.3	1.4	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	273.792	-	274.693	7.6	0.3	-
All items less shelter	281.011	-	282.143	9.0	0.4	-
Commodities less food	185.983	-	181.700	7.7	-2.3	-
Nondurables	290.605	-	286.846	11.7	-1.3	-
Nondurables less food	256.195	-	246.740	10.9	-3.7	-
Services less rent of shelter(3)	394.211	-	404.015	8.5	2.5	-
Services less medical care services	316.202	-	320.594	6.3	1.4	-
Energy	327.723	318.402	308.467	24.4	-5.9	-3.1
All items less energy	292.268	-	294.899	6.3	0.9	-
All items less food and energy	286.391	-	288.802	5.3	0.8	-
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.