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News Release Information

14-1589-ATL
Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (404) 893-4220

Consumer Price Index for Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater-First Half 2014

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater area advanced 2.1 percent from the first half of 2013 to the first half of 2014, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that the all items less food and energy index was 1.9 percent higher compared to its first half 2013 level as price increases were noted for several categories, most notably shelter. Food prices rose 2.6 percent over the year while the index for energy increased 2.5 percent. (See chart 1.)

Food

Food prices advanced 2.6 percent since the first half of 2013, led by a 3.9-percent increase in prices for food at home. Prices for food away from home were unchanged over the year.

Energy

The energy index rose 2.5 percent from the first half of 2013 to the first half of 2014, reflecting increases in prices for electricity (5.6 percent), utility (piped) gas service (7.9 percent), and motor fuel (0.2 percent).

All items less food and energy

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy increased 1.9 percent. Shelter, up 3.5 percent, was among the components contributing to the increase.


Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measure of the average change in prices over time of goods and services purchased by households. The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes CPIs for two population groups: (1) the CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), which covers 29 percent of the total population and (2) the CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) and the Chained CPI for All Urban Consumers (C-CPI-U), which cover approximately 88 percent of the total population and include, in addition to wage earners and clerical worker households, 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 CPIs are 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. Prices are collected each month 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.

In calculating the index, price changes for the various items in each location are averaged together with weights, which represent their importance in the spending of the appropriate population group. Local data are then combined to obtain a U.S. city average. For the CPI-U and CPI-W separate indexes are also published by size of city, by region of the country, for cross-classifications of regions and population-size classed, and for 27 local areas. Area indexes do not measure differences in the level of prices among cities; they only measure the average change in prices for each area since the base period. For the C-CPI-U, data are issued only at the national level. It is important to note that the CPI-U and CPI-W are considered final when released, but the C-CPI-U is issued in preliminary form and subject to two annual revisions.

The index measures price changes from a designated reference date. For the CPI-U and the CPI-W the reference base is 1982-84 equals 100. The reference base for the C-CPI-U is December 1999 equals 100. An increase of 16.5 percent from the reference base, for example, is shown as 116.500. 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 visit the CPI home page on the Internet at www.bls.gov/cpi or contact our CPI Information and Analysis Section at (202) 691-7000.

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 for semiannual averages and percent changes for selected periods
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL (1987=100 unless otherwise noted)
Item and Group

 
Semiannual average indexes
 
Percent change to 2nd half 2010 from-
Jun.
2013
Dec.
2013
Jun.
2014
Jun.
2013
Dec.
2013

Expenditure category

 
 

All Items

206.436207.136210.7362.11.7

Food and beverages

205.823207.762211.0742.61.6

Food

205.186207.082210.4402.61.6

Food at home

206.658210.627214.6433.91.9

Food away from home

204.485203.879204.4840.00.3

Alcoholic beverages

201.981204.405206.8292.41.2

Housing

189.605191.617195.4973.12.0

Shelter

208.281211.209215.5123.52.0

Rent of primary residence (1)

206.494210.391215.6084.42.5

Owners' equiv. rent of residences (1)

219.595223.070226.6133.21.6

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence (1)

219.595223.070226.6133.21.6

Fuels and utilities

202.014204.172211.9154.93.8

Household energy

164.404165.469173.9115.85.1

Energy services (1)

161.443162.595170.9455.95.1

Electricity (1)

159.197160.159168.1625.65.0

Utility (piped) gas service (1)

237.966241.719256.8277.96.3

Household furnishings and operations

117.896116.315114.164-3.2-1.8

Apparel

163.188162.552162.642-0.30.1

Transportation

217.909213.243216.400-0.71.5

Private transportation

224.214219.558222.260-0.91.2

Motor fuel

382.523369.415383.2670.23.7

Gasoline (all types)

374.823361.883375.4320.23.7

Unleaded regular (2)

371.985358.436371.9540.03.8

Unleaded midgrade (2) (3)

327.145315.379327.1220.03.7

Unleaded premium (2)

370.697362.714375.7781.43.6

Medical Care

336.586341.028355.3825.64.2

Recreation (4)

124.046123.295124.0260.00.6

Education and communication (4)

134.865137.271138.0792.40.6

Other goods and services

290.474288.507291.2420.30.9
 

Commodity and service group

 
 

All Items

206.436207.136210.7362.11.7

Commodities

177.188176.112178.4610.71.3

Commodities less food & beverages

161.403158.737160.570-0.51.2

Nondurables less food & beverages

236.616234.119239.5011.22.3

Durables

98.32995.61094.731-3.7-0.9

Services

232.798234.946239.6262.92.0
 

Special aggregate indexes

 
 

All items less medical care

199.208199.744202.8401.81.5

All items less shelter

206.902206.594209.6741.31.5

Commodities less food

164.118161.615163.488-0.41.2

Nondurables

219.507219.417223.6821.91.9

Nondurables less food

234.285232.162237.3411.32.2

Services less rent of shelter

260.453261.591266.3462.31.8

Services less medical care services

221.637223.778227.9082.81.8

Energy

247.138242.805253.2882.54.3

All items less energy

202.675203.750206.7722.01.5

All items less food and energy

202.437203.362206.3241.91.5

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) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample.
(3) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
(4) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
 

NOTE: Data not seasonally adjusted.
 

 

Last Modified Date: Tuesday, August 19, 2014