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News Release Information

17-1301-SAN
Monday, September 18, 2017

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (415) 625-2270

Average Energy Prices, Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County – August 2017

Gasoline prices averaged $2.955 a gallon in the Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County area in August 2017, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.  Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Richard Holden noted that area gasoline prices were higher than last August when they averaged $2.634 per gallon. Los Angeles area households paid an average of 17.8 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity in August 2017, less than the 21.0 cents per kWh paid in August 2016. The average cost of utility (piped) gas at $1.323 per therm in August was lower than the $1.381 per therm spent last year. (Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year-analysis is used throughout.) 

At $2.955 a gallon, Los Angeles area consumers paid 21.3 percent more than the $2.436 national average in August 2017. A year earlier, consumers in the Los Angeles area paid 18.8 percent more than the national average for a gallon of gasoline. The local price of a gallon of gasoline has ranged from 8.1 to 34.2 percent above the national average in the month of August during the past five years. (See chart 1.)

The 17.8 cents per kWh Los Angeles households paid for electricity in August 2017 was 25.4 percent more than the nationwide average of 14.2 cents per kWh. Last August, electricity costs were 51.1 percent higher in Los Angeles compared to the nation. In the past five years, prices paid by Los Angeles area consumers for electricity exceeded the U.S. average by 25.4 percent or more in the month of August. (See chart 2.)

Prices paid by Los Angeles area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, were $1.323 per therm, or 28.8 percent more compared to the national average in August 2017 ($1.027 per therm). A year earlier, area consumers paid 46.4 percent more per therm for natural gas compared to the nation. In the Los Angeles area over the past five years, the per therm cost for natural gas in August has varied between 22.6 and 46.4 percent above the U.S. average. (See chart 3.)

The Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County, Calif. metropolitan area consists of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura Counties in California.
Technical Note

Average prices are estimated from Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for selected commodity series to support the research and analytic needs of CPI data users. Average prices for electricity, utility (piped) gas, and gasoline are published monthly for the U.S. city average, the 4 regions, the 3 population size classes, 10 region/size-class cross-classifications, and the 14 largest local index areas. For electricity, average prices per kilowatt-hour (kWh) are published. For utility (piped) gas, average prices per therm, are published. For gasoline, the average price per gallon is published. Average prices for commonly available grades of gasoline are published as well as the average price across all grades.

All eligible prices are converted to a price per normalized quantity. These prices are then used to estimate a price for a defined fixed quantity. The average price per kilowatt-hour represents the total bill divided by the kilowatt-hour usage. The total bill is the sum of all items applicable to all consumers appearing on an electricity bill including, but not limited to, variable rates per kWh, fixed costs, taxes, surcharges, and credits. This calculation also applies to the average price per therm for utility (piped) gas.

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. Average prices for gasoline, electricity, and utility (piped) gas, Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County and the United States, August 2016-August 2017, not seasonally adjusted
 Gasoline per gallonElectricity per kWhUtility (piped) gas per therm
Los Angeles areaUnited StatesLos Angeles areaUnited StatesLos Angeles areaUnited States
2016      

August

$2.634$2.218$0.210$0.139$1.381$0.943

September

2.7292.2690.2100.1391.3910.954

October

2.7732.3040.2220.1341.3930.961

November

2.7722.2460.1900.1311.2080.970

December

2.6802.2890.1900.1331.2420.972
2017      

January

2.8022.4090.1840.1341.2161.000

February

2.9252.3600.1840.1351.1821.003

March

3.0112.3860.1840.1341.1560.989

April

3.0032.4790.1860.1351.1501.000

May

2.9972.4480.1860.1371.3441.036

June

2.9472.4000.1780.1421.3621.040

July

2.8692.3440.1780.1431.3251.031

August

2.9552.4360.1780.1421.3231.027

 

Last Modified Date: Monday, September 18, 2017