The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Atlanta inched down 0.1 percent over the two months, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that energy prices decreased, while prices increased for both the all items less food and energy, and food indexes. Within the all items less food and energy group, price increases were noted for several indexes, including shelter, apparel, education and communication, and medical care. (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 advanced 2.2 percent, reflecting price increases for shelter and medical care. The index for all items less food and energy rose 2.6 percent over the year. (See chart 1.)

Food

Food prices increased 0.6 percent during the July-August pricing period, reflecting a 1.0-percent price increase for food at home. Prices for food away from home were little changed over the two months, up 0.1 percent.

Over the year, the food index rose 2.9 percent, reflecting price increases for both food at home (3.4 percent) and food away from home (1.9 percent).

Energy

The energy index decreased 3.9 percent over the two-month pricing period, largely due to a 6.5-percent decline in prices for motor fuel. Prices for utility (piped) gas service decreased 4.6 percent over the two months, while electricity prices rose 0.3 percent.

Over the year, the energy index increased 0.3 percent reflecting price increases for both electricity (3.7 percent) and utility (piped) gas service (4.9 percent). A 3.4-percent decrease in motor fuel prices moderated the overall change in the energy index.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 0.4 percent during the July-August pricing period. Shelter increased 0.5 percent and apparel registered a seasonal increase (4.5 percent). Price increases were also noted for education and communication (0.9 percent) and medical care (0.6 percent).

From August 2013 to August 2014, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 2.6 percent, reflecting higher prices for shelter (4.1 percent) and medical care (4.0 percent).

Table A. Atlanta metropolitan area CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted

Month	2009		2010		2011		2012		2013		2014
	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month
February	1.1	-2.4	1.1	1.7	1.6	1.5	1.0	2.4	1.9	2.1	1.3	1.8
April	0.0	-3.5	0.7	2.4	1.7	2.5	1.1	1.8	0.1	1.1	0.8	2.5
June	2.2	-4.0	0.3	0.6	0.9	3.1	0.6	1.5	1.0	1.4	1.5	3.0
August	-0.1	-3.8	-0.1	0.6	0.6	3.8	0.6	1.5	0.7	1.5	-0.1	2.2
October	-1.1	-2.6	-0.8	0.9	-1.5	3.1	-1.2	1.8	-1.0	1.6	-	-
December	-0.3	1.8	-0.2	1.0	-0.3	3.0	-0.9	1.2	-0.2	2.4	-	-

The October 2014 Consumer Price Index for Atlanta is scheduled to be released on Thursday, November 20, 2014 at 8:30 a.m. (ET).

Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index for Atlanta is published bi-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 88 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 the 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/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.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals 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
Atlanta, GA (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	Jun. 2014	Jul. 2014	Aug. 2014	Aug. 2013	Jun. 2014	Jul. 2014
Expenditure category
All Items	223.862		223.657	2.2	-0.1
All items (1967=100)	675.098		674.482
Food and beverages	243.838		245.281	2.8	0.6
Food	254.279		255.885	2.9	0.6
Food at home	248.856	247.379	251.301	3.4	1.0	1.6
Food away from home	263.364		263.527	1.9	0.1
Alcoholic beverages	150.590		150.604	1.5	0.0
Housing	215.087		215.424	3.3	0.2
Shelter	223.795	223.806	224.999	4.1	0.5	0.5
Rent of primary residence (1)	223.294	223.731	224.852	4.2	0.7	0.5
Owners' equiv. rent of residences (1) (2)	219.483	219.527	221.216	4.1	0.8	0.8
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence (1) (2)	219.483	219.527	221.216	4.1	0.8	0.8
Fuels and utilities	325.362		323.064	4.8	-0.7
Household energy	292.489	290.994	289.869	5.1	-0.9	-0.4
Energy Services (1)	291.349	289.838	288.702	5.0	-0.9	-0.4
Electricity (1)	269.191	268.902	269.992	3.7	0.3	0.4
Utility (piped) gas service (1)	282.388	277.376	269.409	4.9	-4.6	-2.9
Household furnishings and operations	128.309		126.523	-3.5	-1.4
Apparel	132.553		138.550	-2.3	4.5
Transportation	218.618		212.826	0.0	-2.6
Private transportation	218.429		213.127	0.3	-2.4
Motor fuel	320.411	316.213	299.571	-3.4	-6.5	-5.3
Gasoline (all types)	318.221	314.054	297.442	-3.6	-6.5	-5.3
Unleaded regular (3)	315.327	310.947	294.372	-3.8	-6.6	-5.3
Unleaded midgrade (3) (4)	383.258	378.757	358.431	-3.4	-6.5	-5.4
Unleaded premium (3)	318.213	314.741	298.968	-2.9	-6.0	-5.0
Medical Care	395.157		397.590	4.0	0.6
Recreation (5)	86.608		85.927	-0.8	-0.8
Education and communication (5)	133.595		134.824	2.4	0.9
Other goods and services	340.802		341.075	3.1	0.1
Commodity and service group
All Items	223.862		223.657	2.2	-0.1
Commodities	187.142		185.665	0.2	-0.8
Commodities less food & beverages	159.264		156.827	-1.3	-1.5
Nondurables less food & beverages	204.776		200.563	-1.5	-2.1
Durables	113.950		113.167	0.2	-0.7
Services	260.561		261.356	3.4	0.3
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	214.380		214.070	2.1	-0.1
All items less shelter	229.545		228.625	1.4	-0.4
Commodities less food	158.608		156.261	-1.2	-1.5
Nondurables	222.639		220.806	0.5	-0.8
Nondurables less food	199.525		195.635	-1.3	-1.9
Services less rent of shelter (2)	320.625		320.812	2.7	0.1
Services less medical care services	245.138		245.738	3.4	0.2
Energy	279.201	276.574	268.275	0.3	-3.9	-3.0
All items less energy	217.673		218.617	2.6	0.4
All items less food and energy	212.329		213.184	2.6	0.4
Footnotes (1) This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means estimator. (2) Index is on a December 1982=100 base. (3) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (4) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base. (5) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
- Data not available. NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date. Data not seasonally adjusted.