The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell increased 0.8 percent from December to February, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that the all items less food and energy index rose 1.3 percent since December, while the energy index fell 2.3 percent. The food index was unchanged over the bi-monthly period. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

From February 2019 to February 2020, the all items CPI-U increased 2.9 percent. Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 2.8 percent. The energy and the food indexes also increased over the past 12 months, up 4.2 percent and 2.6 percent, respectively. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

Food

The food index was unchanged from December to February (0.0 percent). A 0.7-percent decrease in the food at home index since December was largely offset by a 0.6-percent increase in the food away from home index.

The food index rose 2.6 percent for the 12 months ending February 2020, reflecting increases in the food away from home (3.6 percent) and the food at home (1.7 percent) indexes.

Energy

The energy index fell 2.3 percent from December to February, led by a 6.4-percent decline in the gasoline index. In contrast, the electricity index rose 3.6 percent from December to February.

The energy index advanced 4.2 percent over the past 12 months, reflecting increases in the electricity (9.6 percent) and the gasoline (2.2 percent) indexes.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.3 percent from December to February, led by increases in the shelter (1.0 percent) and apparel (9.4 percent) indexes. In contrast, the medical care index declined 1.4 percent since December.

From February 2019 to February 2020, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 2.8 percent. Several indexes contributed to the increase, most notably shelter (4.7 percent) and medical care (8.9 percent). Apparel was among the indexes to decline over the past 12 months, down 9.0 percent.  

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

Month	2016		2017		2018		2019		2020
	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month
February	0.3	1.6	1.2	3.5	1.2	3.3	1.2	1.3	0.8	2.9
April	1.0	1.9	0.6	3.2	0.2	2.8	1.4	2.5
June	1.3	0.7	1.3	3.2	1.2	2.8	-0.1	1.1
August	0.5	1.2	0.8	3.5	0.3	2.2	1.3	2.2
October	-0.1	2.4	-0.3	3.2	-1.0	1.6	-0.2	3.0
December	-0.4	2.6	-0.4	3.2	-0.6	1.4	-0.3	3.3

The Consumer Price Index for March 2020 is scheduled to be released on Friday, April 10, 2020.

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.

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