Prices in the San Francisco area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), increased 1.4 percent for the two months ending in February 2018, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Richard Holden noted that the February increase was influenced by higher prices for shelter and gasoline. (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 increased 3.6 percent.  (See chart 1 and table A.) Energy prices moved up 12.2 percent, largely the result of an increase in the price of gasoline. The index for all items less food and energy rose 3.3 percent over the year. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices advanced 1.7 percent for the two months ending in February. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home moved up 1.8 percent, and prices for food away from home rose 1.7 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices advanced 2.2 percent. Prices for food away from home increased 3.4 percent since a year ago, and prices for food at home advanced 1.1 percent.

Energy

The energy index increased 4.8 percent for the two months ending in February. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for gasoline (7.2 percent). Prices for natural gas service moved up 3.8 percent, and prices for electricity rose 0.4 percent for the same period.

Energy prices jumped 12.2 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (17.1 percent). Prices paid for electricity increased 8.3 percent, and prices for natural gas service advanced 0.7 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.2 percent in the latest two-month period. Higher prices were noted for apparel (4.3 percent) and shelter (0.7 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy increased 3.3 percent. Components contributing to the increase included other goods and services (7.5 percent) and shelter (4.0 percent). Partly offsetting the increases were price declines in apparel (-2.9 percent) and household furnishings and operations (-0.7 percent).

Table A. San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose CPI-U bi-monthly and annual percent changes (not seasonally adjusted)

Month	2013		2014		2015		2016		2017		2018
	Bi-monthly	Annual	Bi-monthly	Annual	Bi-monthly	Annual	Bi-monthly	Annual	Bi-monthly	Annual	Bi-monthly	Annual
February	1.3	2.4	1.2	2.4	1.0	2.5	0.9	3.0	0.8	3.4	1.4	3.6
April	0.8	2.4	1.2	2.8	1.1	2.4	0.7	2.7	1.1	3.8
June	0.5	2.6	0.7	3.0	0.6	2.3	0.6	2.7	0.3	3.5
August	0.1	2.0	0.0	3.0	0.3	2.6	0.7	3.1	0.2	3.0
October	0.2	1.6	0.5	3.2	0.4	2.6	0.9	3.6	0.6	2.7
December	-0.4	2.6	-0.9	2.7	-0.3	3.2	-0.3	3.5	-0.1	2.9

The April 2018 Consumer Price Index for the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward is scheduled to be released on May 10, 2018.

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 94 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 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 San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA. metropolitan area covered in this release is comprised of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo 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

San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	Dec. 2017	Jan. 2018	Feb. 2018	Feb. 2017	Dec. 2017	Jan. 2018
Expenditure category
All items	277.414	-	281.308	3.6	1.4	-
All items (1967=100)	852.847	-	864.818	-	-	-
Food and beverages	269.334	-	273.794	2.4	1.7	-
Food	268.585	-	273.196	2.2	1.7	-
Food at home	247.770	249.327	252.155	1.1	1.8	1.1
Cereals and bakery products	253.562	-	257.289	-	1.5	-
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs	247.652	-	248.194	-	0.2	-
Dairy and related products	262.942	-	266.693	-	1.4	-
Fruits and vegetables	326.032	-	332.725	-	2.1	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)	192.294	-	206.068	-	7.2	-
Other food at home	217.927	-	220.581	-	1.2	-
Food away from home	293.807	-	298.714	3.4	1.7	-
Food away from home	293.807	-	298.714	3.4	1.7	-
Alcoholic beverages	283.547	-	286.864	5.0	1.2	-
Housing	329.209	-	331.779	3.7	0.8	-
Shelter	376.805	377.833	379.330	4.0	0.7	0.4
Rent of primary residence(2)	428.426	430.328	430.929	4.4	0.6	0.1
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)(3)	407.106	408.222	408.860	3.7	0.4	0.2
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(1)(2)	407.106	408.222	408.860	3.7	0.4	0.2
Fuels and utilities	383.189	-	389.461	5.7	1.6	-
Household energy	335.450	337.692	339.487	5.7	1.2	0.5
Energy services(2)	336.303	338.508	340.466	5.8	1.2	0.6
Electricity(2)	360.984	362.520	362.520	8.3	0.4	0.0
Utility (piped) gas service(2)	271.067	274.779	281.249	0.7	3.8	2.4
Household furnishings and operations	133.198	-	135.132	-0.7	1.5	-
Apparel	108.950	-	113.616	-2.9	4.3	-
Transportation	192.875	-	200.283	6.5	3.8	-
Private transportation	186.031	-	192.922	7.8	3.7	-
New and used motor vehicles(4)	94.942	-	96.158	-	1.3	-
New vehicles(1)	160.147	-	160.274	-	0.1	-
Used cars and trucks(1)	247.409	-	250.728	-	1.3	-
Motor fuel	232.445	239.938	248.958	17.1	7.1	3.8
Gasoline (all types)	231.382	238.923	247.991	17.1	7.2	3.8
Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)	231.610	239.122	248.183	17.3	7.2	3.8
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)	216.030	222.159	231.380	17.3	7.1	4.2
Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)	218.605	226.106	234.614	16.1	7.3	3.8
Motor vehicle insurance(1)	469.808	-	497.755	-	5.9	-
Medical care	493.055	-	500.434	3.0	1.5	-
Recreation(6)	115.919	-	115.910	2.4	0.0	-
Education and communication(6)	141.735	-	142.944	1.7	0.9	-
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)	1,625.989	-	1,650.322	-	1.5	-
Other goods and services	463.343	-	473.197	7.5	2.1	-
Commodity and service group
All items	277.414	-	281.308	3.6	1.4	-
Commodities	183.580	-	187.162	2.5	2.0	-
Commodities less food & beverages	137.404	-	140.463	2.6	2.2	-
Nondurables less food & beverages	179.301	-	186.016	5.7	3.7	-
Durables	96.880	-	96.637	-2.4	-0.3	-
Services	355.532	-	359.709	4.0	1.2	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	268.606	-	272.358	3.6	1.4	-
All items less shelter	236.108	-	240.742	3.2	2.0	-
Commodities less food	143.497	-	146.549	2.8	2.1	-
Nondurables	225.547	-	231.165	3.8	2.5	-
Nondurables less food	187.088	-	193.403	5.6	3.4	-
Services less rent of shelter(3)	343.863	-	350.606	4.0	2.0	-
Services less medical care services	347.179	-	351.196	4.1	1.2	-
Energy	273.718	279.790	286.809	12.2	4.8	2.5
All items less energy	280.952	-	284.453	3.2	1.2	-
All items less food and energy	283.677	-	287.009	3.3	1.2	-
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.