The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell increased 1.4 percent from February to April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that the energy index advanced 12.2 percent over the bi-monthly period. Since February, the all items less food and energy rose 0.5 percent and the food index edged up 0.3 percent. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the all items CPI-U increased 2.5 percent. The all items less food and energy index advanced 2.6 percent since April 2018, while the energy index increased 3.8 percent and the food index rose 0.9 percent. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

Food

The food index edged up 0.3 percent from February to April, reflecting a 0.5-percent increase in the food at home index. The food away from home index was unchanged over the bi-monthly period.

Over the last 12 months, the food index rose 0.9 percent, led by a 2.0-percent increase in the food away from home index. The food at home index was unchanged from April 2018.  

Energy

The energy index advanced 12.2 percent from February to April, led by a 22.3-percent jump in the gasoline index. Since February, the electricity and the utility (piped) gas service indexes increased, up 3.4 and 0.3 percent, respectively.

The energy index increased 3.8 percent for the 12 months ending April 2019, reflecting increases in the electricity (5.1 percent), utility (piped) gas service (7.4 percent), and the gasoline (1.5 percent) indexes.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.5 percent since February, as a 0.8-percent increase in the shelter index was partially offset by a 4.5-percent decline in the apparel index.

From April 2018 to April 2019, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 2.6 percent. The shelter index contributed to the increase, up 4.5 percent over the last 12 months.

Table A. Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA, CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted

Month	2015		2016		2017		2018		2019
	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month
February	0.0	-0.3	0.3	1.6	1.2	3.5	1.2	3.3	1.2	1.3
April	0.7	-0.5	1.0	1.9	0.6	3.2	0.2	2.8	1.4	2.5
June	2.5	0.6	1.3	0.7	1.3	3.2	1.2	2.8
August	-0.1	0.6	0.5	1.2	0.8	3.5	0.3	2.2
October	-1.2	0.5	-0.1	2.4	-0.3	3.2	-1.0	1.6
December	-0.6	1.4	-0.4	2.6	-0.4	3.2	-0.6	1.4

The Consumer Price Index for May 2019 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, June 12, 2019.

Technical Note

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 93 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 75 urban areas across the country from about 5,000 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 (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/pdf/homch17.pdf.

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 Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA, Core Based Statistical Area covered in this release is comprised of Barrow, Bartow, Butts, Carroll, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, Dawson, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Haralson, Heard, Henry, Jasper, Lamar, Meriwether, Morgan, Newton, Paulding, Pickens, Pike, Rockdale, Spalding, and Walton Counties in Georgia.

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-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	Feb. 2019	Mar. 2019	Apr. 2019	Apr. 2018	Feb. 2019	Mar. 2019
Expenditure category
All Items	240.072	-	243.383	2.5	1.4	-
All items (1967=100)	723.984	-	733.969	-	-	-
Food and beverages	255.956	-	256.738	1.0	0.3	-
Food	266.369	-	267.098	0.9	0.3	-
Food at home	244.309	246.603	245.576	0.0	0.5	-0.4
Cereals and bakery products	219.870	-	219.951	0.0	0.0	-
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs	270.889	-	276.081	0.3	1.9	-
Dairy and related products	228.836	-	226.570	2.3	-1.0	-
Fruits and vegetables	295.848	-	304.442	3.4	2.9	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)	253.570	-	252.732	-0.4	-0.3	-
Other food at home	203.844	-	200.672	-3.5	-1.6	-
Food away from home	301.375	-	301.309	2.0	0.0	-
Alcoholic beverages	163.226	-	164.732	2.6	0.9	-
Housing	247.111	-	250.022	4.8	1.2	-
Shelter	275.014	275.843	277.116	4.5	0.8	0.5
Rent of primary residence	283.633	284.394	286.064	5.6	0.9	0.6
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)	268.471	269.327	270.305	4.3	0.7	0.4
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)	268.471	269.327	270.305	4.3	0.7	0.4
Fuels and utilities	285.912	-	291.124	5.5	1.8	-
Household energy	242.325	247.266	247.828	5.8	2.3	0.2
Energy Services	240.394	245.444	246.045	5.9	2.4	0.2
Electricity	200.641	207.420	207.420	5.1	3.4	0.0
Utility (piped) gas service	306.031	304.599	306.902	7.4	0.3	0.8
Household furnishings and operations	122.848	-	127.230	5.9	3.6	-
Apparel	154.411	-	147.471	4.5	-4.5	-
Transportation	201.545	-	211.573	1.0	5.0	-
Private transportation	200.892	-	211.844	1.1	5.5	-
New and used motor vehicles(3)	102.452	-	102.954	1.1	0.5	-
New vehicles(1)	213.512	-	214.624	0.5	0.5	-
Used cars and trucks(1)	211.944	-	212.505	0.8	0.3	-
Motor fuel	196.383	215.023	239.700	1.5	22.1	11.5
Gasoline (all types)	194.747	213.373	238.093	1.5	22.3	11.6
Unleaded regular(4)	189.928	208.324	233.120	1.5	22.7	11.9
Unleaded midgrade(4)(5)	247.770	271.929	297.657	2.2	20.1	9.5
Unleaded premium(4)	217.975	236.479	258.566	1.3	18.6	9.3
Motor vehicle insurance(1)	1,177.118	-	1,177.118	0.9	0.0	-
Medical Care	443.474	-	447.257	-2.7	0.9	-
Recreation(3)	84.717	-	85.495	0.3	0.9	-
Education and communication(3)	135.519	-	135.450	3.0	-0.1	-
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)	1,422.307	-	1,422.307	3.5	0.0	-
Other goods and services	381.393	-	378.549	1.1	-0.7	-
Commodity and service group
All Items	240.072	-	243.383	2.5	1.4	-
Commodities	177.328	-	181.943	1.7	2.6	-
Commodities less food & beverages	142.447	-	147.895	2.1	3.8	-
Nondurables less food & beverages	180.935	-	191.549	2.2	5.9	-
Durables	105.221	-	106.876	1.9	1.6	-
Services	299.090	-	301.070	3.0	0.7	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	229.052	-	232.308	3.0	1.4	-
All items less shelter	229.420	-	233.305	1.5	1.7	-
Commodities less food	142.847	-	148.205	2.1	3.8	-
Nondurables	213.707	-	220.260	1.6	3.1	-
Nondurables less food	178.471	-	188.522	2.2	5.6	-
Services less rent of shelter(2)	340.785	-	342.629	1.3	0.5	-
Services less medical care services	283.571	-	285.439	3.9	0.7	-
Energy	199.117	210.638	223.448	3.8	12.2	6.1
All items less energy	244.194	-	245.250	2.4	0.4	-
All items less food and energy	241.081	-	242.183	2.6	0.5	-
Footnotes (1) Index is on a December 1977=100 base. (2) Index is on a December 1982=100 base. (3) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (5) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
- Data not available. NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date. Data not seasonally adjusted.