Prices in the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), advanced 0.9 percent for the two months ending in January 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Michael Hirniak noted that the all items less food and energy index advanced 0.7 percent in December and January, largely due to an increase in the indexes for recreation and apparel. The food index rose 2.0 percent, while the energy index increased 1.2 percent over the past two months. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U advanced 6.4 percent. The index for all items less food and energy rose 5.9 percent over the year, while food prices advanced 9.3 percent. Energy prices increased 8.8 percent, partly the result of an increase in the price of natural gas service. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

Food

Food prices increased 2.0 percent for the two months ending in January. The index for food at home (grocery store prices) advanced 2.3 percent, which was mainly due to an increase in prices for fruits and vegetables (+3.7 percent) and meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (+3.2 percent). Prices for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) increased 1.7 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices advanced 9.3 percent. Prices for food at home rose 11.5 percent since a year ago, with all six major grocery store food group indexes contributing to the rise. The other food at home index (sugar, sweets, fats, and oils, for example) contributed most to the over-the-year increase at 11.4 percent. Prices for food away from home advanced 6.4 percent over the same period.

Energy

The energy index rose 1.2 percent in December and January. The increase within this index was primarily due to higher prices for natural gas service, but the index for electricity (+0.8 percent) also contributed. Prices for gasoline also advanced 1.3 percent over the two-month period.

From January 2022 to January 2023, energy prices increased 8.8 percent, largely due to higher prices for natural gas services, but all components contributed. Prices paid for electricity advanced 9.1 percent, and prices for gasoline rose 4.7 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.7 percent in December and January, after rising 0.9 percent in October and November. Higher prices for recreation (+4.7 percent), apparel (+7.9 percent) and owners’ equivalent rent of residences (+0.5 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for used cars and trucks (-4.1 percent), public transportation, and household furnishings and operations (-0.9 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 5.9 percent. Components contributing to the increase included owners’ equivalent rent of residences (+9.2 percent), rent of primary residence (+12.7 percent), and recreation (+7.7 percent). Partially offsetting these increases was a decline in the prices paid for used cars and trucks (-10.6 percent), and medical care services.

The March 2023 Consumer Price Index for the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood area is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, April 12, 2023.

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; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

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 -
	Nov. 2022	Dec. 2022	Jan. 2023	Jan. 2022	Nov. 2022	Dec. 2022
All items	309.655	-	312.392	6.4	0.9	-
All items (1967 = 100)	1,032.569	-	1,041.697
Food and beverages	286.631	-	292.445	9.1	2.0	-
Food	293.347	-	299.284	9.3	2.0	-
Food at home	272.689	275.381	278.907	11.5	2.3	1.3
Cereals and bakery products	321.330	-	334.006	14.0	3.9	-
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs	273.991	-	282.699	7.7	3.2	-
Dairy and related products	233.699	-	233.302	8.7	-0.2	-
Fruits and vegetables	305.933	-	317.253	12.9	3.7	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)	189.783	-	196.642	16.7	3.6	-
Other food at home	249.784	-	250.762	11.4	0.4	-
Food away from home	320.367	-	325.804	6.4	1.7	-
Alcoholic beverages	226.971	-	231.874	7.5	2.2	-
Housing	314.553	-	316.121	9.4	0.5	-
Shelter	364.471	365.325	366.309	10.0	0.5	0.3
Rent of primary residence	385.681	387.189	387.963	12.7	0.6	0.2
Owners' equivalent rent of residences(2)	357.893	358.991	359.570	9.2	0.5	0.2
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(2)	357.893	358.991	359.570	9.2	0.5	0.2
Fuels and utilities	273.947	-	281.866	11.0	2.9	-
Household energy	184.565	187.688	189.880	13.4	2.9	1.2
Energy services	182.399	185.688	187.589	13.4	2.8	1.0
Electricity	174.782	174.782	176.214	9.1	0.8	0.8
Utility (piped) gas service	-	-	-	-	-	-
Household furnishings and operations	141.756	-	140.538	5.1	-0.9	-
Apparel	112.326	-	121.246	8.5	7.9	-
Transportation	316.690	-	313.111	1.8	-1.1	-
Private transportation	316.048	-	314.603	2.1	-0.5	-
New and used motor vehicles(3)	133.181	-	130.986	-	-1.6	-
New vehicles(1)	252.520	-	254.377	-	0.7	-
Used cars and trucks(1)	386.087	-	370.424	-10.6	-4.1	-
Motor fuel	286.380	249.008	288.331	5.9	0.7	15.8
Gasoline (all types)	279.590	242.665	283.176	4.7	1.3	16.7
Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)	271.342	234.127	275.195	4.8	1.4	17.5
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)	275.909	242.841	279.272	4.6	1.2	15.0
Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)	305.933	272.092	308.743	4.5	0.9	13.5
Medical care	690.124	-	-	-	-	-
Recreation(3)	172.478	-	180.630	7.7	4.7	-
Education and communication(3)	126.322	-	128.219	3.2	1.5	-
Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)	1,117.930	-	1,117.729	2.8	0.0	-
Other goods and services	423.484	-	429.295	2.4	1.4	-
Commodity and service group
Commodities	206.058	-	208.791	4.6	1.3	-
Commodities less food and beverages	166.353	-	167.880	2.2	0.9	-
Nondurables less food and beverages	199.864	-	204.846	4.7	2.5	-
Durables	132.153	-	131.490	0.1	-0.5	-
Services	400.853	-	403.364	7.4	0.6	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less shelter	283.518	-	286.756	4.5	1.1	-
All items less medical care	292.084	-	294.673	7.1	0.9	-
Commodities less food	168.853	-	170.500	2.4	1.0	-
Nondurables	243.410	-	249.023	7.2	2.3	-
Nondurables less food	201.675	-	206.769	5.0	2.5	-
Services less rent of shelter(2)	446.272	-	449.818	4.1	0.8	-
Services less medical care services	376.068	-	378.993	8.5	0.8	-
Energy	231.547	217.332	234.396	8.8	1.2	7.9
All items less energy	318.574	-	321.422	6.3	0.9	-
All items less food and energy	324.329	-	326.702	5.9	0.7	-
(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.