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News Release Information

23-2453-ATL
Tuesday, November 14, 2023

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

Consumer Price Index, South Region — October 2023

Prices in the South down 0.1 percent in October; up 3.7 percent over the past year

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the South declined 0.1 percent in October, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. A decrease in the gasoline index was a major contributor to the all items monthly decline. (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 increased 3.7 percent for the 12 months ending in October after increasing 4.2 percent for the 12-month period ending in September. (See chart 1 and table A.) The index for all items less and food and energy advanced 4.5 percent over the past 12 months. The food index continued to increase, up 3.4 percent over the past year. In contrast, the energy index declined 3.5 percent over the last 12 months. (See table 1.)

Food

The food index rose 0.3 percent in October, led by a 0.4-percent increase in the food at home index. Three of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased over the month, most notably, the index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (+1.3 percent) and the index for other food at home (+0.8 percent). The food away from home index also increased in October, up 0.2 percent.

The food index advanced 3.4 percent for the 12 months ending in October. The index for food away from home increased 5.7 percent over the past year while the index for food at home rose 2.1 percent. Five of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased over the past 12 months including other food at home (+3.9 percent), cereals and bakery products (+4.0 percent), and nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials (+3.6 percent).

Energy

The energy index fell 4.3 percent in October, primarily due to a 7.6-percent drop in the gasoline index. The electricity index also declined in October, down 1.3 percent. In contrast, the natural gas index rose 1.0 percent over the month.

The energy index declined 3.5 percent for the 12 months ending in October. The gasoline index and the natural gas index each declined over the past year, down 3.5 percent and 14.9 percent, respectively. The index for electricity rose 0.3 percent over the last 12 months.    

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.2 percent in October. The shelter index rose 0.3 percent over the month, reflecting increases in the owners’ equivalent rent (+0.5 percent) and rent of primary residence (+0.7 percent) indexes. Medical care services was also among the indexes to increase over the month, up 1.2 percent. Among the indexes to decline in October include used cars and trucks (-1.6 percent), household furnishings and operations (-0.4 percent), and education and communication (-0.3 percent).

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 4.5 percent for the 12 months ending in October, after increasing 4.6 percent for the 12-month period ending in September. The increase was largely contributed to shelter (+7.7 percent). The index for owners’ equivalent increased 7.8 percent over the past year while the index for rent of primary residence advanced 8.3 percent.

Geographic divisions

Additional price indexes are now available for the three divisions of the South. In October, the all items index declined 0.1 percent in each of the three divisions: South Atlantic, East South Central, and West South Central.

Over the year, the all items index increased 4.2 percent in the East South Central division and 3.9 percent in the South Atlantic division. The all items index rose 3.0 percent over the past year in the West South Central division.

Table A. South region CPI-U 1-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted
Month20192020202120222023
1-month12-month1-month12-month1-month12-month1-month12-month1-month12-month

January

0.21.20.32.30.51.60.97.80.86.9

February

0.51.10.21.90.52.01.18.40.66.4

March

0.71.6-0.11.10.82.91.49.10.45.3

April

0.51.8-0.8-0.20.74.40.58.80.75.5

May

-0.11.4-0.2-0.40.85.61.29.20.24.4

June

-0.11.10.60.30.95.81.59.80.33.3

July

0.31.40.60.60.55.80.19.40.23.4

August

-0.11.40.41.10.35.6-0.28.90.64.1

September

0.01.30.21.30.35.80.28.70.24.2

October

0.21.30.11.31.06.60.48.1-0.13.7

November

0.01.6-0.11.20.47.20.17.7

December

0.02.10.21.40.37.4-0.37.0

The Consumer Price Index for November 2023 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, December 12, 2023, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).


Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index for the South region is published monthly. 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, 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 individuals with sensory impairments 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-
Aug.
2023
Sep.
2023
Oct.
2023
Oct.
2022
Aug.
2023
Sep.
2023

Expenditure category

All Items

298.975299.657299.3943.70.1-0.1

All items (December 1977=100)

484.979486.086485.659---

Food and beverages

316.753317.276318.3003.40.50.3

Food

320.551321.044322.0913.40.50.3

Food at home

301.524301.593302.8582.10.40.4

Cereal and bakery products

363.566363.868362.8994.0-0.2-0.3

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

312.203312.986316.9020.61.51.3

Dairy and related products

269.557269.059267.515-1.2-0.8-0.6

Fruits and vegetables

332.595332.218333.0600.40.10.3

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials

214.931215.221214.6173.6-0.1-0.3

Other food at home

271.688271.446273.7373.90.80.8

Food away from home

352.143353.478354.0655.70.50.2

Alcoholic beverages

263.807264.778265.4793.20.60.3

Housing

301.627303.938304.2365.90.90.1

Shelter

350.941353.240354.2287.70.90.3

Rent of primary residence

375.042376.871379.4978.31.20.7

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(1)

352.581354.750356.5497.81.10.5

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(1)

352.569354.734356.5287.81.10.5

Fuels and utilities

293.595296.199294.315-0.60.2-0.6

Household energy

239.735242.319240.088-2.20.1-0.9

Energy services

239.770242.324239.861-2.00.0-1.0

Electricity

236.616239.684236.5130.30.0-1.3

Utility (piped) gas service

240.988239.941242.357-14.90.61.0

Household furnishings and operations

147.507149.580148.9121.21.0-0.4

Apparel

139.961143.046143.5133.22.50.3

Transportation

276.864273.572269.9361.5-2.5-1.3

Private transportation

280.107276.654272.4371.9-2.7-1.5

New and used motor vehicles(2)

131.609129.319128.522-1.8-2.3-0.6

New vehicles

187.690187.746187.3801.6-0.2-0.2

New cars and trucks(2)(3)

------

New cars(3)

186.143185.853185.6971.1-0.2-0.1

Used cars and trucks

199.079187.824184.887-7.4-7.1-1.6

Motor fuel

316.698309.732286.702-3.8-9.5-7.4

Gasoline (all types)

315.327307.769284.355-3.5-9.8-7.6

Unleaded regular(3)

308.712300.976277.315-3.7-10.2-7.9

Unleaded midgrade(3)(4)

349.070342.619320.493-2.2-8.2-6.5

Unleaded premium(3)

337.877332.441313.338-1.5-7.3-5.7

Medical care

516.547515.166520.015-0.80.70.9

Medical care commodities

384.064383.332383.2184.0-0.20.0

Medical care services

560.553558.942565.615-2.00.91.2

Professional services

391.671391.392392.090-0.70.10.2

Recreation(2)

135.463136.300136.4983.30.80.1

Education and communication(2)

140.453140.900140.5001.20.0-0.3

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

1,481.5211,488.0051,489.7813.60.60.1

Other goods and services

511.735516.872518.5505.21.30.3

Commodity and service group

All Items

298.975299.657299.3943.70.1-0.1

Commodities

224.824223.808222.0640.5-1.2-0.8

Commodities less food and beverages

182.693181.266178.779-1.1-2.1-1.4

Nondurables less food and beverages

239.964239.443233.8440.4-2.6-2.3

Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel

300.047297.557288.533-0.3-3.8-3.0

Durables

131.357129.725128.982-2.1-1.8-0.6

Services

373.435375.959377.3195.81.00.4

Rent of shelter(1)

361.445363.774364.8097.80.90.3

Transportation services

464.612468.189475.20512.32.31.5

Other services

388.311391.096391.1184.20.70.0

Special aggregate indexes

All items less medical care

286.765287.540287.0384.10.1-0.2

All items less food

295.429296.137295.6923.70.1-0.2

All items less shelter

279.831279.854279.0751.7-0.3-0.3

Commodities less food

185.293183.904181.463-1.0-2.1-1.3

Nondurables

276.130276.102273.6352.0-0.9-0.9

Nondurables less food

240.998240.556235.2990.5-2.4-2.2

Nondurables less food and apparel

295.430293.233285.044-0.1-3.5-2.8

Services less rent of shelter(1)

399.605402.463404.3113.41.20.5

Services less medical care services

355.691358.487359.4466.71.10.3

Energy

269.420267.696256.235-3.5-4.9-4.3

All items less energy

303.789304.697305.4584.30.50.2

All items less food and energy

301.484302.457303.1744.50.60.2

Commodities less food and energy commodities

170.821169.959169.453-0.2-0.8-0.3

Energy commodities

321.371314.535291.819-3.9-9.2-7.2

Services less energy services

387.556390.082391.8266.31.10.4

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: Tuesday, November 14, 2023