The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Dallas-Fort Worth area fell 1.0 percent in October and November, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Stanley W. Suchman noted that the decline was the result of falling energy prices, particularly a 17.0-percent decrease in gasoline costs. Partially offsetting this decline, the index for all items less food and energy edged up 0.2 percent and food prices were little changed, up 0.1 percent. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, short-term changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

The all items CPI-U rose 0.8 percent in the Dallas-Fort Worth area during the last 12 months, the slowest annual rate of increase since the year ended in January 2011, and continuing the series of over-the-year increases of less than 2.0 percent that began in September 2013. The index for all items less food and energy advanced 1.1 percent during the year ended in November 2014; annual increases for this index have been 2.0 percent or less since March 2013. (See chart 1.)

Food

Local food prices were little changed, up 0.1 percent in October and November, after rising 1.4 percent in August and September. Movements among the two components of the index were markedly different as prices for food away from home increased 1.1 percent while prices for food at home (grocery store prices) fell 0.5 percent. This was the largest price movement for the index for food away from home since the two months ended in January 2013 when prices also rose 1.1 percent.

From November 2013 to November 2014, the food index was up 2.8 percent, reflecting the combined effects of a 3.1-percent price rise at grocery stores and a 2.4-percent price rise for food away from home. Annual increases in total food prices have been 3.0 percent or less since March 2012.

Energy

The energy index fell 11.6 percent in October and November following a 3.8-percent decrease in August and September. The current decline was primarily the result of a 17.0-percent decrease in gasoline prices, the largest negative price movement for this index since December and January 2009 (-17.3 percent). Also contributing were decreases in electricity and natural gas prices, down 6.1 and 2.9 percent, respectively.

During the year ended in November 2014, the energy index decreased 4.8 percent as a result of lower motor fuel costs, as gasoline prices fell 12.1 percent – the fastest annual price decline recorded since the year ended in October 2009 (-24.8 percent). Partially offsetting this movement were annual increases in household energy costs, as natural gas prices climbed 13.7 percent and electricity prices rose 2.2 percent.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy edged up 0.2 percent in October and November, matching the August and September change. Differing movements among the sub-components resulted in little change in the overall index in October and November. A 2.5-percent advance in medical care prices had the greatest impact on the current increase, though smaller advances in motor vehicle insurance, shelter, and household furnishings and operations also contributed. Slowing these gains, apparel prices declined 4.5 percent and education and communication prices fell 1.7 percent. The decline in education and communication costs was driven by lower prices for information technology hardware, software, and services.

From November 2013 to November 2014, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 1.1 percent. The biggest factor in the current annual increase was a 2.9-percent advance in shelter costs, though higher prices for medical care (3.8 percent) also contributed. Countering a portion of these increases, annual declines were recorded for apparel and for education and communication, down 4.9 and 1.7 percent, respectively.

The January 2015 Consumer Price Index for All Items for Dallas-Fort Worth will be released on February 26, 2015.

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 89 percent of the total population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers 28 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 87 urban areas across the country from about 4,000 housing units and approximately 26,000 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/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 Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area (CMSA) includes Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Henderson, Hood, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, and Tarrant Counties.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Federal Relay Service: 1-800-877-8339.

Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods,
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from -
	Sep. 2014	Oct. 2014	Nov. 2014	Nov. 2013	Sep. 2014	Oct. 2014
All items	219.380		217.188	0.8	-1.0
All items (1967 = 100)	688.184		681.308
Food and beverages	249.118		249.432	2.6	0.1
Food	243.844		244.140	2.8	0.1
Food at home	223.416	222.243	222.199	3.1	-0.5	0.0
Food away from home	275.215		278.115	2.4	1.1
Alcoholic beverages	318.328		318.950	-1.9	0.2
Housing	195.923		195.129	2.6	-0.4
Shelter	206.879	207.058	207.262	2.9	0.2	0.1
Rent of primary residence (1)	215.273	216.125	216.735	4.9	0.7	0.3
Owners' equivalent rent of residences (1) (2)	222.132	222.350	222.964	2.6	0.4	0.3
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence (1) (2)	222.132	222.350	222.964	2.6	0.4	0.3
Fuels and utilities	239.004		229.666	3.1	-3.9
Household energy	233.969	229.476	220.844	3.6	-5.6	-3.8
Energy services (1) (3)	229.775	225.412	216.896	3.7	-5.6	-3.8
Electricity (1)	219.748	214.865	206.378	2.2	-6.1	-3.9
Utility (piped) gas service (1)	227.484	227.313	220.888	13.7	-2.9	-2.8
Household furnishings and operations	127.172		128.014	0.0	0.7
Apparel	117.562		112.281	-4.9	-4.5
Transportation	219.845		210.720	-3.2	-4.2
Private transportation	222.589		212.746	-2.8	-4.4
Motor fuel	296.027	273.196	246.647	-12.0	-16.7	-9.7
Gasoline (all types)	294.168	271.181	244.092	-12.1	-17.0	-10.0
Gasoline, unleaded regular (4)	288.510	265.033	238.003	-12.6	-17.5	-10.2
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (4) (5)	301.031	280.082	252.818	-11.0	-16.0	-9.7
Gasoline, unleaded premium (4)	296.282	275.968	251.051	-10.6	-15.3	-9.0
Medical care	391.005		400.872	3.8	2.5
Recreation (6)	111.188		111.302	0.2	0.1
Education and communication (6)	140.132		137.720	-1.7	-1.7
Other goods and services	377.702		377.385	0.5	-0.1
COMMODITY AND SERVICE GROUP
Commodities	183.497		178.986	-0.8	-2.5
Commodities less food and beverages	152.501		146.470	-2.7	-4.0
Nondurables less food and beverages	189.641		176.635	-4.9	-6.9
Durables	119.251		119.519	0.3	0.2
Services	254.417		254.517	2.0	0.0
SPECIAL AGGREGATE INDEXES
All items less shelter	225.767		222.423	-0.1	-1.5
All items less medical care	210.863		208.172	0.6	-1.3
Commodities less food	157.098		151.103	-2.7	-3.8
Nondurables	217.515		210.123	-1.2	-3.4
Nondurables less food	196.341		183.643	-4.7	-6.5
Services less rent of shelter (2)	323.098		322.768	1.1	-0.1
Services less medical care services	240.052		239.692	1.9	-0.1
Energy	265.682	252.264	234.884	-4.8	-11.6	-6.9
All items less energy	218.872		219.281	1.4	0.2
All items less food and energy	214.789		215.218	1.1	0.2
Footnotes (1) This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means estimator. (2) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base. (3) Prior to January 2011 this series was titled Gas (piped) and electricity. (4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (5) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base. (6) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
Note: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.