The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell edged down 0.2 percent from August to October, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that the energy index declined 6.9 percent over the bi-monthly period. Since August, the all items less food and energy index increased 0.5 percent and the food index rose 0.3 percent. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

From October 2018 to October 2019, the all items CPI-U increased 3.0 percent. Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 3.5 percent and the food index rose 2.3 percent. In contrast, the energy index declined 0.5 percent over the past 12 months. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

Food

The food index rose 0.3 percent from August to October, led by a 0.6-percent increase in the food away from home index. The food at home index was unchanged over the bi-monthly period.

The food index advanced 2.3 percent for the 12 months ending October 2019, reflecting increases in the food away from home (3.5 percent) and the food at home (1.3 percent) indexes.

Energy

The energy index fell 6.9 percent from August to October, led by a seasonal decline in the electricity index (-17.6 percent). The gasoline index fell 1.5 percent since August, while the utility (piped) gas service index rose 1.1 percent.

The energy index declined 0.5 percent over the past 12 months, reflecting an 11.4-percent drop in the gasoline index. Since October 2018, the electricity index advanced 22.5 percent and the utility (piped) gas service index rose 2.7 percent.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.5 percent from August to October. Increases were noted for several categories including shelter (0.5 percent), household furnishings and operations (3.3 percent) and medical care (1.9 percent). In contrast, recreation (-3.1 percent) and new and used motor vehicles (-1.6 percent) were among the indexes to decline over the bi-monthly period.

From October 2018 to October 2019, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 3.5 percent. Several indexes contributed to the increase, most notably shelter (5.0 percent) and medical care (9.6 percent).

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	-0.1	1.1
August	-0.1	0.6	0.5	1.2	0.8	3.5	0.3	2.2	1.3	2.2
October	-1.2	0.5	-0.1	2.4	-0.3	3.2	-1.0	1.6	-0.2	3.0
December	-0.6	1.4	-0.4	2.6	-0.4	3.2	-0.6	1.4

The Consumer Price Index for November 2019 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, December 11, 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-
	Aug. 2019	Sep. 2019	Oct. 2019	Oct. 2018	Aug. 2019	Sep. 2019
Expenditure category
All Items	246.311	-	245.860	3.0	-0.2	-
All items (1967=100)	742.800	-	741.439	-	-	-
Food and beverages	258.394	-	259.085	2.3	0.3	-
Food	268.916	-	269.610	2.3	0.3	-
Food at home	245.063	245.004	245.004	1.3	0.0	0.0
Cereals and bakery products	221.910	-	220.701	1.7	-0.5	-
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs	277.111	-	275.707	0.3	-0.5	-
Dairy and related products	230.462	-	236.641	3.6	2.7	-
Fruits and vegetables	290.418	-	287.633	3.8	-1.0	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)	250.033	-	257.142	3.3	2.8	-
Other food at home	204.232	-	201.933	-1.6	-1.1	-
Food away from home	306.611	-	308.432	3.5	0.6	-
Alcoholic beverages	164.664	-	165.397	2.7	0.4	-
Housing	256.584	-	255.201	6.0	-0.5	-
Shelter	281.746	282.176	283.221	5.0	0.5	0.4
Rent of primary residence	291.999	291.594	292.899	5.0	0.3	0.4
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)	274.249	275.375	276.975	4.8	1.0	0.6
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)	274.249	275.375	276.975	4.8	1.0	0.6
Fuels and utilities	327.752	-	294.601	12.2	-10.1	-
Household energy	286.278	286.839	251.275	15.1	-12.2	-12.4
Energy Services	285.043	285.417	249.554	15.4	-12.5	-12.6
Electricity	257.663	257.663	212.225	22.5	-17.6	-17.6
Utility (piped) gas service	302.275	303.708	305.610	2.7	1.1	0.6
Household furnishings and operations	125.682	-	129.854	6.9	3.3	-
Apparel	146.288	-	145.249	-0.5	-0.7	-
Transportation	206.351	-	206.579	-3.1	0.1	-
Private transportation	206.772	-	206.280	-3.0	-0.2	-
New and used motor vehicles(3)	101.840	-	100.254	-1.3	-1.6	-
New vehicles(1)	206.251	-	204.552	-4.1	-0.8	-
Used cars and trucks(1)	218.298	-	210.781	1.0	-3.4	-
Motor fuel	224.115	225.862	220.905	-11.4	-1.4	-2.2
Gasoline (all types)	222.572	224.334	219.342	-11.4	-1.5	-2.2
Unleaded regular(4)	217.542	219.450	214.449	-11.5	-1.4	-2.3
Unleaded midgrade(4)(5)	280.075	283.356	275.864	-11.2	-1.5	-2.6
Unleaded premium(4)	245.023	244.994	240.886	-10.2	-1.7	-1.7
Motor vehicle insurance(1)	1,177.118	-	1,217.012	3.4	3.4	-
Medical Care	471.005	-	479.767	9.6	1.9	-
Recreation(3)	84.977	-	82.381	-1.7	-3.1	-
Education and communication(3)	136.560	-	137.330	2.3	0.6	-
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)	1,462.326	-	1,462.326	2.8	0.0	-
Other goods and services	389.769	-	392.455	2.1	0.7	-
Commodity and service group
All Items	246.311	-	245.860	3.0	-0.2	-
Commodities	180.298	-	181.141	0.4	0.5	-
Commodities less food & beverages	145.381	-	146.213	-0.5	0.6	-
Nondurables less food & beverages	188.023	-	189.005	-2.3	0.5	-
Durables	105.230	-	105.894	1.6	0.6	-
Services	308.483	-	306.759	4.6	-0.6	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	234.342	-	233.515	2.5	-0.4	-
All items less shelter	235.559	-	234.279	2.0	-0.5	-
Commodities less food	145.745	-	146.575	-0.5	0.6	-
Nondurables	218.889	-	219.755	-0.1	0.4	-
Nondurables less food	185.206	-	186.166	-2.1	0.5	-
Services less rent of shelter(2)	354.126	-	347.829	4.1	-1.8	-
Services less medical care services	291.332	-	289.501	4.2	-0.6	-
Energy	231.211	232.331	215.275	-0.5	-6.9	-7.3
All items less energy	247.658	-	248.865	3.3	0.5	-
All items less food and energy	244.671	-	245.950	3.5	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.