Prices in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), declined 0.8 percent in December, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Jason Palmer noted that the energy index fell 11.0 percent, and the food index fell 0.9 percent in December. The all items less food and energy index was up 0.2 percent. Within the all items less food and energy category, prices were higher over the month for shelter and household furnishings and operations, but lower for apparel. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U advanced 5.5 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 advanced 7.7 percent. Energy prices rose 2.5 percent, largely the result of an increase in the price of utility (piped) gas service. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices declined 0.9 percent for the month of December. Prices for food at home (groceries) declined 1.4 percent, and prices for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) were unchanged for the same period.

Over the year, food prices advanced 7.7 percent. Prices for food at home rose 8.3 percent over the year. All six major grocery store food group indexes increased over the year. The index for dairy and related products increased 15.9 percent, other food at home (includes sugar, sweets, fats, and oils, for example) rose 10.7 percent, and cereal and bakery products advanced 10.6 percent. Prices for food away from home increased 6.7 percent.

Energy

The energy index decreased 11.0 percent over the month. The decrease was mainly due to lower prices for gasoline (-17.9 percent). Prices for electricity advanced 11.6 percent, while prices for utility (piped) gas service fell 14.8 percent for the same period.

Energy prices advanced 2.5 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for utility (piped) gas service (8.6 percent). Prices paid for electricity rose 1.3 percent, while prices for gasoline decreased 0.5 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 0.2 percent in December. Higher prices for shelter (0.8 percent) and household furnishings and operations (2.3 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for apparel (-3.5 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 5.3 percent. Components contributing to the increase included shelter (6.5 percent), recreation (7.8 percent), and household furnishings and operations (7.0 percent). Partly offsetting the increases was a decrease in the used cars and trucks index (-8.6 percent).

Table A. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI, CPI-U 1-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted

Month	2018		2019		2020		2021		2022
	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month
January	0.8	1.8	0.6	0.8	0.9	2.6	0.7	0.7	0.9	6.8
February	0.0	1.6	0.6	1.4	0.0	2.0	0.6	1.2	0.8	7.1
March	0.0	1.8	0.1	1.5	-0.7	1.1	0.6	2.6	1.4	7.8
April	0.7	2.1	-0.1	0.8	-0.9	0.3	1.0	4.6	0.4	7.2
May	0.4	2.3	0.8	1.2	1.0	0.4	1.0	4.7	1.8	8.0
June	-0.2	2.2	-0.4	1.0	0.3	1.1	0.4	4.7	1.3(r)	8.9(r)
July	-0.3	1.9	0.3	1.6	0.2	1.0	0.4	4.9	-0.2(r)	8.4(r)
August	0.1	1.7	0.2	1.6	0.1	1.0	0.1	4.8	0.1(r)	8.3(r)
September	0.4	1.6	0.2	1.4	0.6	1.4	0.3	4.5	0.2(r)	8.2(r)
October	0.0	2.0	0.3	1.8	-0.1	1.0	0.7	5.3	0.1(r)	7.7(r)
November	-0.6	1.0	-0.2	2.2	-0.4	0.8	0.2	6.0	-0.6	6.8
December	-0.3	1.1	-0.2	2.2	-0.2	0.9	0.4	6.6	-0.8	5.5
Footnotes: (r) Revised

The January 2023 Consumer Price Index for the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, February 14, 2023, at 7:30 a.m. (CT).

Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index for Chicago 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 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 87 urban areas across the country from about 4,000 housing units and approximately 26,000 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/homch17_a.htm.

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 Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, Ill.-Ind.-Wis. consolidated area covered in this release is comprised of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties in Illinois; Lake and Porter Counties in Indiana; and Kenosha County 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
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	Oct. 2022	Nov. 2022	Dec. 2022	Dec. 2021	Oct. 2022	Nov. 2022
Expenditure category
All items	278.415	276.861	274.577	5.5	-1.4	-0.8
All items (1967=100)	831.789	827.146	820.322	-	-	-
Food and beverages	307.040	309.360	306.670	7.8	-0.1	-0.9
Food	307.947	310.034	307.177	7.7	-0.3	-0.9
Food at home	285.583	288.405	284.258	8.3	-0.5	-1.4
Cereals and bakery products	320.577	327.905	324.301	10.6	1.2	-1.1
Meats, poultry, fish and eggs	311.643	305.777	305.976	4.2	-1.8	0.1
Dairy and related products	264.611	266.554	264.019	15.9	-0.2	-1.0
Fruits and vegetables	347.089	368.546	353.422	6.2	1.8	-4.1
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)	240.129	237.547	228.766	5.2	-4.7	-3.7
Other food at home	231.728	232.349	231.853	10.7	0.1	-0.2
Food away from home	331.052	331.470	331.484	6.7	0.1	0.0
Alcoholic beverages	293.536	299.504	299.430	9.9	2.0	0.0
Housing	293.956	290.838	292.255	6.3	-0.6	0.5
Shelter	362.707	362.667	365.482	6.5	0.8	0.8
Rent of primary residence(2)	383.055	384.450	388.585	6.6	1.4	1.1
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)(3)	372.871	374.185	377.596	6.8	1.3	0.9
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)(3)	372.871	374.185	377.596	6.8	1.3	0.9
Fuels and utilities	280.297	268.154	259.194	4.9	-7.5	-3.3
Household energy	229.268	216.693	207.393	5.1	-9.5	-4.3
Energy services(2)	233.854	220.946	211.463	5.1	-9.6	-4.3
Electricity(2)	151.598	152.168	169.807	1.3	12.0	11.6
Utility (piped) gas service(2)	329.029	299.259	255.013	8.6	-22.5	-14.8
Household furnishings and operations	108.678	104.244	106.655	7.0	-1.9	2.3
Apparel	89.956	87.857	84.808	2.9	-5.7	-3.5
Transportation	237.823	235.613	222.900	4.6	-6.3	-5.4
Private transportation	240.301	237.609	225.076	4.1	-6.3	-5.3
New and used motor vehicles(4)	120.450	119.281	118.129	2.1	-1.9	-1.0
New vehicles(1)	212.529	213.081	213.469	7.8	0.4	0.2
Used cars and trucks(1)	384.673	373.809	365.191	-8.6	-5.1	-2.3
Motor fuel	383.882	365.629	300.391	-0.4	-21.7	-17.8
Gasoline (all types)	379.784	361.632	296.891	-0.5	-21.8	-17.9
Gasoline, unleaded regular(5)	367.480	349.590	285.755	-0.9	-22.2	-18.3
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(5)(6)	413.152	395.799	334.067	2.1	-19.1	-15.6
Gasoline, unleaded premium(5)	395.975	381.066	328.788	3.3	-17.0	-13.7
Medical care	544.424	541.431	544.045	2.3	-0.1	0.5
Recreation(4)	126.185	125.258	125.777	7.8	-0.3	0.4
Education and communication(4)	139.080	139.886	140.106	-1.1	0.7	0.2
Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)	1,239.502	1,253.021	1,250.647	2.1	0.9	-0.2
Other goods and services	441.302	445.484	442.860	6.9	0.4	-0.6
Commodity and service group
All items	278.415	276.861	274.577	5.5	-1.4	-0.8
Commodities	202.060	199.991	195.550	4.5	-3.2	-2.2
Commodities less food and beverages	150.579	147.110	142.369	2.1	-5.5	-3.2
Nondurables less food and beverages	204.747	200.664	187.466	3.5	-8.4	-6.6
Durables	101.966	99.258	99.852	0.7	-2.1	0.6
Services	349.472	348.617	348.990	6.1	-0.1	0.1
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	267.265	265.771	263.236	5.8	-1.5	-1.0
All items less shelter	249.732	247.703	243.804	5.0	-2.4	-1.6
Commodities less food	155.675	152.356	147.647	2.4	-5.2	-3.1
Nondurables	255.954	254.899	246.604	6.1	-3.7	-3.3
Nondurables less food	210.700	207.110	194.504	4.0	-7.7	-6.1
Services less rent of shelter(3)	352.580	350.907	348.647	5.6	-1.1	-0.6
Services less medical care services	333.933	333.216	333.337	6.5	-0.2	0.0
Energy	288.717	273.920	243.786	2.5	-15.6	-11.0
All items less energy	280.397	279.949	280.002	5.7	-0.1	0.0
All items less food and energy	276.341	275.417	276.015	5.3	-0.1	0.2
Footnotes (1) Index on a December 1977=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.