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News Release Information

22-1660-ATL
Wednesday, August 10, 2022

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

Consumer Price Index, South Region — July 2022

Prices in the South up 0.1 percent over the month and 9.4 percent over the past year

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the South increased 0.1 percent in July, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.4 percent over the month. The food index increased 1.3 percent in July, while the energy index declined 4.5 percent. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

The all items CPI-U for the South advanced 9.4 percent for the 12 months ending in July, after increasing 9.8-percent over the 12-month period ending in June. The index for all items less food and energy rose 6.8 percent over the past year, while the energy index advanced 33.2 percent. The food index also increased over the past 12 months, up 11.1 percent. (See chart 1 and table 1.)


Food

The food index rose 1.3 percent in July, led by a 1.6 percent increase in the food at home index. The food away from home index also increased in July, up 0.7 percent.

The food index advanced 11.1 percent for the 12 months ending in July, reflecting increases in the food at home (+13.1 percent) and food away from home (+7.8 percent) indexes.

Energy

The energy index fell 4.5 percent in July, primarily reflecting a 9.6-percent decrease in the gasoline index. The utility (piped) gas service index declined 3.6 percent over the month, while the electricity index rose 4.3 percent.

The energy index advanced 33.2 percent for the 12 months ending in July, led by a 44.3-percent increase in the gasoline index. The electricity and utility (piped) gas service indexes also increased over the past 12 months, up 19.2 percent and 24.4 percent, respectively.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.4 percent in July, reflecting increases across several indexes, most notably, shelter (+0.8 percent)

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 6.8 percent for the 12 months ending in July, led by a 7.4-percent increase in the shelter index. The new and used motor vehicles index rose 9.5 percent over the past 12 months, reflecting increases in the new vehicles (+11.9 percent) and used cars and trucks (+6.5 percent) indexes.

Geographic divisions

Additional price indexes are now available for the three divisions of the South. The all items CPI-U rose 0.2 percent in the South Atlantic division in July. In contrast, the all items index edged down 0.1 percent in the West South Central division over the month, and was unchanged in the East South Central division.

Over the year, the all items index advanced 9.7 percent in the West South Central division and 9.5 percent in the South Atlantic division. The all items index increased 8.0 percent in the East South Central division over the past 12 months.

Table A. South region CPI-U 1-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted
Month20182019202020212022
1-month12-month1-month12-month1-month12-month1-month12-month1-month12-month

January

0.51.80.21.20.32.30.51.60.97.8

February

0.62.10.51.10.21.90.52.01.18.4

March

0.22.30.71.6-0.11.10.82.91.49.1

April

0.42.40.51.8-0.8-0.20.74.40.58.8

May

0.32.7-0.11.4-0.2-0.40.85.61.29.2

June

0.22.7-0.11.10.60.30.95.81.59.8

July

0.02.90.31.40.60.60.55.80.19.4

August

-0.12.4-0.11.40.41.10.35.6

September

0.01.70.01.30.21.30.35.8

October

0.22.10.21.30.11.31.06.6

November

-0.31.90.01.6-0.11.20.47.2

December

-0.51.50.02.10.21.40.37.4

The Consumer Price Index for August 2022 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, September 13, 2022, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).


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 U.S. population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers approximately 29 percent of the total U.S. 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 6,000 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; for most of the CPI-U the reference base is 1982-84 equals 100. An increase of 7 percent from the reference base, for example, is shown as 107.000.  Alternatively, that relationship can also be expressed as the price of a base period market basket of goods and services rising from $100 to $107. For further details see the CPI home page on the Internet at www.bls.gov/cpi and the CPI section of the BLS Handbook of Methods 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.

The South region is comprised of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods
South (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Item and Group

IndexesPercent change from-
May
2022
Jun.
2022
Jul.
2022
Jul.
2021
May
2022
Jun.
2022

Expenditure category

All Items

283.307287.427287.6089.41.50.1

All items (December 1977=100)

459.563466.247466.540---

Food and beverages

294.391297.375300.98810.62.21.2

Food

297.475300.550304.34211.12.31.3

Food at home

282.376285.549290.09213.12.71.6

Cereal and bakery products

326.610336.070342.45715.64.91.9

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

305.338306.944311.06210.61.91.3

Dairy and related products

258.374262.159268.53916.63.92.4

Fruits and vegetables

322.997321.255320.4247.1-0.8-0.3

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials

194.077196.999200.07614.33.11.6

Other food at home

246.995250.863257.18916.54.12.5

Food away from home

321.619324.482326.8637.81.60.7

Alcoholic beverages

251.540253.259254.3823.51.10.4

Housing

274.741277.887280.6258.62.11.0

Shelter

315.381318.204320.7777.41.70.8

Rent of primary residence

332.574336.108339.5488.82.11.0

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(1)

315.981319.065321.7947.21.80.9

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(1)

315.979319.060321.7917.21.80.9

Fuels and utilities

277.092287.245294.23516.06.22.4

Household energy

226.873237.629244.71420.27.93.0

Energy services

225.770236.794244.12319.98.13.1

Electricity

218.352227.842237.74719.28.94.3

Utility (piped) gas service

256.407276.584266.49924.43.9-3.6

Household furnishings and operations

142.272142.514143.3689.30.80.6

Apparel

135.625135.275133.4144.8-1.6-1.4

Transportation

277.639287.733280.74117.11.1-2.4

Private transportation

278.511289.154282.69217.31.5-2.2

New and used motor vehicles(2)

131.942133.980134.8859.52.20.7

New vehicles

179.191180.641181.76611.91.40.6

New cars and trucks(2)(3)

------

New cars(3)

178.625180.313181.65613.31.70.7

Used cars and trucks

209.507214.326214.7946.52.50.2

Motor fuel

374.069409.815371.16444.9-0.8-9.4

Gasoline (all types)

370.911407.003368.09144.3-0.8-9.6

Unleaded regular(3)

364.515400.378360.98345.0-1.0-9.8

Unleaded midgrade(3)(4)

402.183439.936404.62042.40.6-8.0

Unleaded premium(3)

384.332418.341387.64339.50.9-7.3

Medical care

515.023519.243522.1214.91.40.6

Medical care commodities

363.141363.694364.5684.40.40.2

Medical care services

566.431571.931575.5055.01.60.6

Professional services

388.455393.152393.4032.21.30.1

Recreation(2)

131.169131.375131.2945.10.1-0.1

Education and communication(2)

138.577138.753138.5200.80.0-0.2

Tuition, other school fees, and child care(5)

1,407.4031,416.9631,419.2533.20.80.2

Other goods and services

482.677483.830484.8366.20.40.2

Commodity and service group

All Items

283.307287.427287.6089.41.50.1

Commodities

222.542227.101225.02412.41.1-0.9

Commodities less food and beverages

187.161191.987188.17013.50.5-2.0

Nondurables less food and beverages

249.314259.597248.84719.5-0.2-4.1

Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel

316.367332.379316.75123.10.1-4.7

Durables

132.162133.567133.8168.21.30.2

Services

343.821347.424349.9897.31.80.7

Rent of shelter(1)

324.528327.399330.0737.41.70.8

Transportation services

401.388407.280407.2439.81.50.0

Other services

373.615373.837373.7173.30.00.0

Special aggregate indexes

All items less medical care

270.526274.626274.6709.81.50.0

All items less food

280.840285.101284.7739.11.4-0.1

All items less shelter

272.008276.660275.89810.31.4-0.3

Commodities less food

189.401194.183190.45413.10.6-1.9

Nondurables

270.748277.632273.58514.71.0-1.5

Nondurables less food

249.096258.890248.81318.4-0.1-3.9

Nondurables less food and apparel

309.258324.001309.84321.50.2-4.4

Services less rent of shelter(1)

378.941383.586386.0937.21.90.7

Services less medical care services

323.726327.152329.6187.71.80.8

Energy

289.645311.620297.63233.22.8-4.5

All items less energy

284.307286.659288.2637.41.40.6

All items less food and energy

282.559284.799286.0586.81.20.4

Commodities less food and energy commodities

168.132169.463169.6417.30.90.1

Energy commodities

379.519415.098376.50444.6-0.8-9.3

Services less energy services

356.350359.177361.2456.51.40.6

Footnotes
(1) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base.
(2) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
(3) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample.
(4) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
(5) Indexes on a December 1977=100 base.

- Data not available.
Regions defined as the four Census regions. South includes Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.
NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date. Data not seasonally adjusted.

 

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, August 10, 2022