Prices in the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), rose 0.3 percent for the two months ending in September 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Michael Hirniak noted that a 0.2-percent increase in the index for all items less food and energy was the leading factor in the rise, but higher prices for both food and energy also contributed. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U rose 4.5 percent. The index for all items less food and energy increased 3.1 percent over the year. Energy prices jumped 33.0 percent, while food prices increased 3.3 percent. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

Food

Food prices advanced 1.0 percent for the two months ending in September. Prices for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) rose 1.5 percent. Prices for food at home (groceries) advanced 0.6 percent for the same period, largely due to an increase in prices for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs.

Over the year, food prices increased 3.3 percent. Prices for food away from home rose 4.2 percent, while prices for food at home advanced 2.6 percent since a year ago.

Energy

The energy index rose 1.1 percent for the two months ending in September. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for gasoline (+1.6 percent). Prices for electricity inched up 0.2 percent for the same period.

Energy prices jumped 33.0 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (+54.8 percent). Prices paid for electricity increased 2.4 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy edged up 0.2 percent in the latest two-month period. Higher prices for owners’ equivalent rent of residences (+0.8 percent), apparel (+3.7 percent), and recreation (+1.3 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for used cars and trucks (-4.5 percent) and other goods and services (-1.3 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy increased 3.1 percent. Components contributing to the increase included owners’ equivalent rent of residences (+4.5 percent), used cars and trucks (+24.8 percent), recreation (+8.6 percent).

The November 2021 Consumer Price Index for the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood area is scheduled to be released on Friday, December 10, 2021.

Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures 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 Denver-Aurora-Lakewood metropolitan area is comprised of Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Clear Creek, Denver, Douglas, Elbert, Gilpin, Jefferson, and Park counties in Colorado.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments 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,
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from -
	Jul. 2021	Aug. 2021	Sep. 2021	Sep. 2020	Jul. 2021	Aug. 2021
All items	285.268	-	286.186	4.5	0.3	-
All items (1967 = 100)	951.251	-	954.309
Food and beverages	256.399	-	259.016	3.4	1.0	-
Food	261.578	-	264.203	3.3	1.0	-
Food at home	241.252	241.758	242.726	2.6	0.6	0.4
Cereals and bakery products	283.445	-	285.358	-0.6	0.7	-
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs	247.951	-	255.629	4.9	3.1	-
Dairy and related products	206.004	-	200.329	2.3	-2.8	-
Fruits and vegetables	283.694	-	279.170	-0.1	-1.6	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)	164.693	-	162.961	-1.3	-1.1	-
Other food at home	213.034	-	216.634	5.9	1.7	-
Food away from home	288.845	-	293.195	4.2	1.5	-
Alcoholic beverages	210.781	-	213.387	4.0	1.2	-
Housing	282.988	-	283.421	1.4	0.2	-
Shelter	327.813	328.270	327.539	0.7	-0.1	-0.2
Rent of primary residence	336.496	337.331	338.040	2.5	0.5	0.2
Owners' equivalent rent of residences(2)	323.027	324.582	325.494	4.5	0.8	0.3
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(2)	323.027	324.582	325.494	4.5	0.8	0.3
Fuels and utilities	243.489	-	245.068	4.3	0.6	-
Household energy	159.441	159.573	159.823	6.7	0.2	0.2
Energy services	157.776	157.931	158.175	6.7	0.3	0.2
Electricity	161.226	161.325	161.534	2.4	0.2	0.1
Utility (piped) gas service	-	-	-	-	-	-
Household furnishings and operations	128.834	-	130.840	5.4	1.6	-
Apparel	108.201	-	112.248	16.8	3.7	-
Transportation	299.144	-	297.856	17.5	-0.4	-
Private transportation	299.243	-	301.709	17.8	0.8	-
New and used motor vehicles(3)	123.732	-	-	-	-	-
New vehicles(1)	223.464	-	-	-	-	-
Used cars and trucks(1)	389.261	-	371.783	24.8	-4.5	-
Motor fuel	295.084	304.460	299.891	54.9	1.6	-1.5
Gasoline (all types)	293.590	302.874	298.419	54.8	1.6	-1.5
Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)	286.176	295.481	290.880	57.2	1.6	-1.6
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)	286.691	295.332	291.970	47.9	1.8	-1.1
Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)	316.037	324.989	321.173	45.1	1.6	-1.2
Motor vehicle insurance(1)	3,105.349	-	3,105.349	4.0	0.0	-
Medical care	636.469	-	-	-	-	-
Recreation(3)	167.771	-	170.033	8.6	1.3	-
Education and communication(3)	125.791	-	126.765	-0.8	0.8	-
Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)	1,099.264	-	1,111.405	1.2	1.1	-
Other goods and services	398.314	-	392.995	1.1	-1.3	-
Commodity and service group
Commodities	191.122	-	193.330	9.3	1.2	-
Commodities less food and beverages	157.428	-	159.369	13.1	1.2	-
Nondurables less food and beverages	190.338	-	193.547	18.2	1.7	-
Durables	123.803	-	124.725	7.9	0.7	-
Services	367.904	-	367.380	2.0	-0.1	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less shelter	264.838	-	266.287	6.8	0.5	-
All items less medical care	269.165	-	270.124	4.9	0.4	-
Commodities less food	159.663	-	161.633	12.7	1.2	-
Nondurables	223.953	-	226.943	9.9	1.3	-
Nondurables less food	191.631	-	194.795	17.0	1.7	-
Services less rent of shelter(2)	420.934	-	420.040	3.6	-0.2	-
Services less medical care services	343.897	-	343.259	2.0	-0.2	-
Energy	221.805	226.328	224.284	33.0	1.1	-0.9
All items less energy	292.797	-	293.595	3.1	0.3	-
All items less food and energy	299.362	-	299.854	3.1	0.2	-
(1) Indexes on a January 1978=100 base. (2) Indexes on a November 1982=100 base. (3) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (5) Index on a December 1993=100 base.
- Data not available.