Consumer Price Index, Boston-Cambridge-Newton – July 2022

Area prices were up 0.7 percent over the past two months, up 7.0 percent from a year ago

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Boston advanced 0.7 percent for the two months ending in July 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner William J. Sibley noted that the July increase was influenced by higher prices for food. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U increased 7.0 percent. The index for all items less food and energy rose 3.9 percent over the year, mainly due to higher shelter prices. Energy prices advanced 43.9 percent. Food prices increased 10.3 percent. (See table 1.)

Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in CPI-U, Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, July 2019-July 2022

View Chart Data

Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in CPI-U, Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, July 2019–July 2022
Month	All items	All items less food and energy
Jul 2019	2.0	2.7
Sep 2019	1.1	1.9
Nov 2019	2.1	2.8
Jan 2020	2.2	2.4
Mar 2020	1.8	2.3
May 2020	0.6	1.1
Jul 2020	0.8	0.8
Sep 2020	0.6	0.5
Nov 2020	0.4	0.4
Jan 2021	0.5	0.2
Mar 2021	1.3	0.4
May 2021	3.2	2.3
Jul 2021	4.3	3.3
Sep 2021	4.0	2.7
Nov 2021	5.3	3.3
Jan 2022	6.3	4.7
Mar 2022	7.3	5.2
May 2022	7.5	4.9
Jul 2022	7.0	3.9

Food

Food prices increased 2.6 percent for the two months ending in July. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home rose 1.7 percent, and prices for food away from home rose 4.3 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices increased 10.3 percent. Prices for food at home advanced 10.9 percent since a year ago, and prices for food away from home rose 9.4 percent.

Energy

The energy index increased 2.1 percent for the two months ending in July. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for electricity (5.3 percent). Prices for gasoline rose 2.9 percent, and prices for utility (piped) gas service increased 7.9 percent for the same period. Partly offsetting the increase within household energy was a price decrease in fuel oil.

Energy prices advanced 43.9 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (55.1 percent). Prices paid for natural gas service rose 52.3 percent, and prices for electricity rose 20.2 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.3 percent in the latest two-month period. Higher prices for shelter (0.5 percent) and medical care (1.4 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for household furnishings and operations (-3.5 percent) and apparel (-1.8 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 3.9 percent. Components contributing to the increase included shelter (2.8 percent), medical care (6.9 percent), and new and used motor vehicles (7.5 percent). Within shelter, owners’ equivalent rent of residences increased 4.2 percent. Partly offsetting the increase within shelter was a price decrease in lodging away from home.

The Consumer Price Index for September 2022 is scheduled to be released on October 13, 2022, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).

Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measures 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 BLS Handbook of Methods, Chapter 17, The Consumer Price Index, 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, Mass.-N.H. Core Based Statistical Area covered in this release is comprised of Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth, Suffolk Counties in Massachusetts; Rockingham, Strafford Counties in New Hampshire.

Information from this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table A. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted
Month	2018		2019		2020		2021		2022
Month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month
January	1.1	2.8	0.5	2.5	0.6	2.2	0.7	0.5	1.6	6.3
March	0.9	3.6	0.5	2.1	0.1	1.8	0.9	1.3	1.9	7.3
May	0.0	3.2	0.2	2.3	-1.0	0.6	0.8	3.2	1.1	7.5
July	0.3	3.4	0.0	2.0	0.2	0.8	1.2	4.3	0.7	7.0
September	1.2	3.3	0.2	1.1	0.1	0.6	-0.1	4.0
November	-0.4	3.2	0.7	2.1	0.4	0.4	1.7	5.3

Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods, Boston-Cambridge-Newton, Ma.-N.H. (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted) (not seasonally adjusted)
Expenditure category	Indexes				Percent change from
Expenditure category	Historical data	May 2022	Jun. 2022	Jul. 2022	Jul. 2021	May 2022	Jun. 2022
All items		313.578		315.841	7.0	0.7
All items (1967 = 100)		911.422		918.001

Food and beverages		312.662		320.493	9.6	2.5
Food		316.898		325.185	10.3	2.6
Food at home		290.104	292.924	294.910	10.9	1.7	0.7
Cereal and bakery products		347.425		353.862	11.0	1.9
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		317.587		317.142	12.6	-0.1
Dairy and related products		332.523		342.933	20.3	3.1
Fruits and vegetables		376.289		370.481	4.8	-1.5
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)		175.428		187.788	14.6	7.0
Other food at home		219.249		225.162	9.2	2.7
Food away from home		362.550		377.960	9.4	4.3
Alcoholic beverages		269.720		272.176	0.8	0.9

Housing		325.761		326.206	5.8	0.1
Shelter		377.395	378.066	379.462	2.8	0.5	0.4
Rent of primary residence(2)		388.190	392.245	394.186	4.6	1.5	0.5
Owners' equivalent rent of residences(2)(3)(4)		405.346	407.971	409.915	4.2	1.1	0.5
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(2)(3)(4)		405.346	407.971	409.915	4.2	1.1	0.5
Fuels and utilities		379.200		380.640	29.9	0.4
Household energy		325.258	335.875	330.197	35.9	1.5	-1.7
Energy services(2)		312.895	324.136	332.054	30.2	6.1	2.4
Electricity(2)		346.253	351.405	364.450	20.2	5.3	3.7
Utility (piped) gas service(2)		241.257	260.301	260.309	52.3	7.9	0.0
Household furnishings and operations		151.131		145.836	10.4	-3.5

Apparel		135.997		133.558	8.4	-1.8

Transportation		242.470		245.748	14.8	1.4
Private transportation		249.985		256.074	15.7	2.4
New and used motor vehicles(5)		136.123		139.570	7.5	2.5
New Vehicles(1)		234.301		236.830	6.9	1.1
Used cars and trucks(1)		483.067		494.963	6.8	2.5
Motor fuel		396.371	433.260	407.841	55.3	2.9	-5.9
Gasoline (all types)		391.698	428.374	403.191	55.1	2.9	-5.9
Gasoline, unleaded regular(6)		382.105	417.422	391.643	55.2	2.5	-6.2
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(6)(7)		412.235	454.183	434.832	56.0	5.5	-4.3
Gasoline, unleaded premium(6)		396.049	436.193	419.128	54.5	5.8	-3.9
Motor vehicle insurance(1)

Medical care		733.033		743.091	6.9	1.4

Recreation(5)		118.266		118.320	0.4	0.0

Education and communication(5)		174.610		175.231	0.6	0.4
Tuition, other fees, and child care(1)		1,434.076		1,437.716	0.4	0.3

Other goods and services		565.740		572.395	8.1	1.2

Commodity and service group
Commodities		228.512		230.836	12.2	1.0
Commodities less food and beverages		183.589		183.914	14.0	0.2
Nondurables less food and beverages		245.049		245.826	23.3	0.3
Durables		129.193		129.237	5.7	0.0
Services		390.392		392.603	4.5	0.6

Special aggregate indexes
All items less shelter		291.367		293.759	9.5	0.8
All items less medical care		297.528		299.505	7.0	0.7
Commodities less food		187.439		187.819	13.4	0.2
Nondurables		278.442		282.543	15.5	1.5
Nondurables less food		246.095		246.974	21.3	0.4
Services less rent of shelter(3)		423.369		425.961	6.6	0.6
Services less medical care services		365.422		367.591	4.2	0.6
Energy		351.088	372.160	358.607	43.9	2.1	-3.6
All items less energy		316.080		317.996	4.7	0.6
All items less food and energy		317.284		318.288	3.9	0.3
Footnotes (1) Indexes on a January 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) Indexes on a November 1982=100 base. (4) This index series underwent a change in composition in January 2010. The expenditure class now includes weight from secondary residences, and has been re-titled "Owners' equivalent rent of residences." The item stratum "Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence" excludes secondary residences. (5) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (6) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (7) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
Note: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.

Last Modified Date: Thursday, August 11, 2022

Northeast Information Office

Consumer Price Index, Boston-Cambridge-Newton – July 2022