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News Release Information

18-1458-SAN
Thursday, September 13, 2018

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

Consumer Price Index, Los Angeles area — August 2018

Area prices were up 0.2 percent over the past month, up 3.9 percent from a year ago

Prices in the Los Angeles area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), edged up 0.2 percent in August, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Richard Holden noted that the August increase was influenced by higher prices for shelter and natural gas service. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U advanced 3.9 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) Energy prices jumped 18.0 percent, largely the result of an increase in the price of gasoline. The index for all items less food and energy advanced 3.2 percent over the year. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices edged up 0.2 percent for the month of August. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home and prices for food away from home each inched up 0.2 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices advanced 1.8 percent. Prices for food away from home rose 3.0 percent since a year ago, and prices for food at home advanced 0.5 percent.

Energy

The energy index advanced 1.2 percent over the month. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for natural gas service (16.9 percent). Prices for electricity were unchanged, while prices for gasoline decreased 0.6 percent for the same period.

Energy prices jumped 18.0 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (21.2 percent). Prices paid for natural gas service jumped 21.4 percent, and prices for electricity advanced 8.9 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy edged up 0.2 percent in August. Higher prices for shelter (0.7 percent) and education and communication (0.5 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for medical care (-2.5 percent) and new vehicles (-0.2 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 3.2 percent. Components contributing to the increase included shelter (5.1 percent) and education and communication (2.0 percent). Partly offsetting the increases were price declines in medical care (-1.3 percent) and household furnishings and operations (-0.5 percent).

Table A. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CPI-U monthly and annual percent changes (not seasonally adjusted)
Month201320142015201620172018
MonthlyAnnualMonthlyAnnualMonthlyAnnualMonthlyAnnualMonthlyAnnualMonthlyAnnual

January

0.82.00.50.8-0.3-0.10.73.10.92.10.83.5

February

0.72.20.50.50.70.10.02.40.62.7 0.7 3.6

March

0.11.30.61.01.00.50.31.70.32.7 0.4 3.8

April

-0.40.90.01.4-0.10.50.22.00.22.7 0.44.0

May

0.11.00.41.71.01.10.51.40.32.5 0.4 4.1

June

-0.11.40.11.8-0.30.80.11.8-0.22.2 -0.24.0

July

-0.11.30.12.00.71.40.01.10.32.5 0.2 3.9

August

0.10.8-0.11.8-0.31.10.01.40.32.8 0.23.9

September

0.20.60.01.7-0.40.70.21.90.43.1  

October

0.1-0.1-0.11.40.21.00.42.20.43.1  

November

-0.50.4-0.71.30.01.6-0.41.80.13.6  

December

0.01.1-0.50.7-0.12.00.02.00.03.6  

The September 2018 Consumer Price Index for the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim area is scheduled to be released on October 11, 2018.

Consumer Price Index Geographic Revision for 2018

In January 2018, BLS introduced a new geographic area sample for the Consumer Price Index (CPI). As part of the new sample, Los Angeles and Riverside have separate indexes. Additional information on the geographic revision is available at: www.bls.gov/cpi/additional-resources/geographic-revision-2018.htm.


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/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 Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim. metropolitan area covered in this release is comprised of Los Angeles and Orange Counties in the State of California.

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. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Item and Group

IndexesPercent change from-
Jun.
2018
Jul.
2018
Aug.
2018
Aug.
2017
Jun.
2018
Jul.
2018

Expenditure category

All items

265.522266.007266.6653.90.40.2

All items (1967=100)

784.470785.904787.846---

Food and beverages

258.121259.476259.9461.70.70.2

Food

258.493259.767260.3781.80.70.2

Food at home

251.908254.096254.7220.51.10.2

Cereals and bakery products

265.089263.179261.956--1.2-0.5

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

276.874276.583280.619-1.41.5

Dairy and related products

230.080234.972241.160-4.82.6

Fruits and vegetables

334.496344.753341.279-2.0-1.0

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

254.932258.283265.345-4.12.7

Other food at home

200.450200.663196.676--1.9-2.0

Food away from home

261.902262.209262.7953.00.30.2

Food away from home

261.902262.209262.7953.00.30.2

Alcoholic beverages

237.407239.755238.3241.50.4-0.6

Housing

300.801301.542303.8515.01.00.8

Shelter

346.681346.981349.2445.10.70.7

Rent of primary residence(2)

363.460365.169367.3504.71.10.6

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)(3)

360.277361.296362.7095.10.70.4

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(1)(2)

360.256361.275362.6895.10.70.4

Fuels and utilities

320.494328.041338.18010.65.53.1

Household energy

274.645282.590295.76612.87.74.7

Energy services(2)

273.373281.402294.65212.97.84.7

Electricity(2)

309.886316.429316.4238.92.10.0

Utility (piped) gas service(2)

234.695246.743288.39321.422.916.9

Household furnishings and operations

115.769115.972115.982-0.50.20.0

Apparel

105.173107.346107.5941.62.30.2

Transportation

215.564213.623213.0547.7-1.2-0.3

Private transportation

211.801211.018210.2978.2-0.7-0.3

New and used motor vehicles(4)

92.01392.28092.075-0.1-0.2

New vehicles(1)

169.414169.010168.744--0.4-0.2

Used cars and trucks(1)

268.557270.549272.547-1.50.7

Motor fuel

284.872280.952279.25221.4-2.0-0.6

Gasoline (all types)

278.310274.462272.79221.2-2.0-0.6

Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)

279.017275.178273.46021.4-2.0-0.6

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

267.048263.459261.95021.0-1.9-0.6

Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)

264.768260.989259.61820.1-1.9-0.5

Motor vehicle insurance(1)

758.909758.909758.909-0.00.0

Medical care

479.922480.464468.339-1.3-2.4-2.5

Recreation(6)

105.881105.881106.369-0.40.50.5

Education and communication(6)

144.897145.628146.4132.01.00.5

Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)

1,780.0971,828.3631,850.794-4.01.2

Other goods and services

426.226428.248427.9132.70.4-0.1

Commodity and service group

All items

265.522266.007266.6653.90.40.2

Commodities

180.949181.190181.4903.00.30.2

Commodities less food & beverages

140.158139.961140.1783.90.00.2

Nondurables less food & beverages

191.320191.669191.4897.80.1-0.1

Durables

90.88290.23990.777-2.5-0.10.6

Services

340.805341.507342.4814.30.50.3

Special aggregate indexes

All items less medical care

256.185256.666257.8044.20.60.4

All items less shelter

229.915230.487230.4173.00.20.0

Commodities less food

144.464144.332144.5083.80.00.1

Nondurables

226.376227.194227.3074.60.40.0

Nondurables less food

196.442196.905196.6547.40.1-0.1

Services less rent of shelter(3)

341.556342.924342.0523.00.1-0.3

Services less medical care services

328.838329.484331.3674.80.80.6

Energy

283.343283.532287.00918.01.31.2

All items less energy

266.441266.950267.4253.00.40.2

All items less food and energy

268.094268.484268.9393.20.30.2

Footnotes
(1) Indexes on a December 1977=100 base.
(2) This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means estimator.
(3) Index is on a December 1982=100 base.
(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.

- Data not available
NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.

 

Last Modified Date: Thursday, September 13, 2018