Prices in the Seattle area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), inched down 0.1 percent for the two months ending in October 2020, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Richard Holden noted that the October decrease was influenced by lower prices for household furnishings and operations and food at home. (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 2.1 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) The index for all items less food and energy increased 2.4 percent over the year. Food prices rose 4.1 percent. Energy prices decreased 8.8 percent, largely the result of a decrease in the price of gasoline. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices decreased 0.8 percent for the two months ending in October. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home decreased 2.3 percent, largely due to price declines in meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (-4.7 percent). Prices for food away from home increased 0.9 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices rose 4.1 percent. Prices for food away from home rose 5.4 percent since a year ago, and prices for food at home advanced 3.1 percent.

Energy

The energy index decreased 1.1 percent for the two months ending in October. The decrease was mainly due to lower prices for gasoline (-1.5 percent). Prices for electricity decreased 0.9 percent, but natural gas service increased 0.2 percent for the same period.

Energy prices decreased 8.8 percent over the year, largely due to lower prices for gasoline (-16.8 percent). Prices paid for natural gas service advanced 9.1 percent, and prices for electricity increased 3.6 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy was unchanged in the latest two-month period. Higher prices for motor vehicle insurance (4.0 percent), used cars and trucks (3.5 percent), and recreation (1.9 percent) helped counter lower prices for household furnishings and operations (-4.6 percent), medical care (-0.9 percent), and shelter (-0.2 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy increased 2.4 percent. Components contributing to the increase included used car and trucks (11.2 percent), household furnishings and operations (5.1 percent), and shelter (3.0 percent). Partly offsetting the increases were price decreases in motor vehicle insurance (-11.6 percent) and new vehicles (-3.2 percent).

Table A. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA, CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted

Month	2016		2017		2018		2019		2020
	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month
February	0.2	2.2	1.0	3.4	0.8	3.3	0.7	2.7	1.0	2.5
April	1.1	2.5	0.8	3.1	0.8	3.3	0.5	2.4	-0.6	1.3
June	0.9	1.8	0.8	3.0	0.8	3.3	0.7	2.3	0.2	0.9
August	0.3	2.1	-0.2	2.5	-0.3	3.1	0.6	3.2	1.4	1.6
October	0.0	2.4	0.5	3.0	0.4	3.1	-0.6	2.2	-0.1	2.1
December	0.0	2.6	0.5	3.5	0.2	2.8	0.3	2.2

The December 2020 Consumer Price Index for the Seattle area is scheduled to be released on January 13, 2021.

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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA. metropolitan area covered in this release is comprised of King, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties in the State of Washington.

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

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	Aug. 2020	Sep. 2020	Oct. 2020	Oct. 2019	Aug. 2020	Sep. 2020
Expenditure category
All items	284.905	-	284.505	2.1	-0.1	-
All items (1967=100)	868.501	-	867.281	-	-	-
Food and beverages	292.042	-	289.724	4.2	-0.8	-
Food	294.709	-	292.258	4.1	-0.8	-
Food at home	268.667	264.805	262.512	3.1	-2.3	-0.9
Cereals and bakery products	307.461	-	303.710	0.6	-1.2	-
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs	234.233	-	223.190	3.6	-4.7	-
Dairy and related products	238.216	-	225.928	0.1	-5.2	-
Fruits and vegetables	424.333	-	409.268	2.1	-3.6	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)	340.918	-	351.038	18.2	3.0	-
Other food at home	216.328	-	214.166	0.1	-1.0	-
Food away from home	334.748	-	337.641	5.4	0.9	-
Alcoholic beverages	260.154	-	259.056	4.7	-0.4	-
Housing	344.681	-	341.933	3.5	-0.8	-
Shelter	394.928	394.174	394.036	3.0	-0.2	0.0
Rent of primary residence(2)	405.128	405.114	405.000	3.5	0.0	0.0
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)(3)	416.381	416.454	417.166	2.5	0.2	0.2
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(1)(2)	416.381	416.454	417.166	2.5	0.2	0.2
Fuels and utilities	280.715	-	279.354	3.9	-0.5	-
Household energy	249.523	249.339	247.919	3.9	-0.6	-0.6
Energy services(2)	295.177	295.086	293.242	4.2	-0.7	-0.6
Electricity(2)	325.912	325.841	322.962	3.6	-0.9	-0.9
Utility (piped) gas service(2)	162.430	162.332	162.731	9.1	0.2	0.2
Household furnishings and operations	194.222	-	185.202	5.1	-4.6	-
Apparel	128.329	-	126.898	0.2	-1.1	-
Transportation	211.664	-	216.674	-3.5	2.4	-
Private transportation	226.709	-	226.228	-4.6	-0.2	-
New and used motor vehicles(4)	101.211	-	101.050	3.6	-0.2	-
New vehicles(1)	191.728	-	187.688	-3.2	-2.1	-
Used cars and trucks(1)	340.290	-	352.198	11.2	3.5	-
Motor fuel	310.729	313.383	306.103	-16.8	-1.5	-2.3
Gasoline (all types)	317.406	320.074	312.626	-16.8	-1.5	-2.3
Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)	342.199	344.888	336.655	-17.3	-1.6	-2.4
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)	259.123	259.807	260.147	-13.0	0.4	0.1
Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)	299.174	302.630	295.362	-14.9	-1.3	-2.4
Motor vehicle insurance(1)	489.915	-	509.658	-11.6	4.0	-
Medical care	418.634	-	415.061	0.8	-0.9	-
Recreation(6)	97.927	-	99.765	2.6	1.9	-
Education and communication(6)	144.233	-	145.009	2.2	0.5	-
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)	1,707.536	-	1,730.993	2.8	1.4	-
Other goods and services	416.271	-	416.035	-0.3	-0.1	-
Commodity and service group
All items	284.905	-	284.505	2.1	-0.1	-
Commodities	200.506	-	198.281	1.7	-1.1	-
Commodities less food & beverages	156.557	-	154.405	-0.1	-1.4	-
Nondurables less food & beverages	185.465	-	184.531	-4.5	-0.5	-
Durables	126.209	-	123.229	5.4	-2.4	-
Services	363.536	-	365.038	2.3	0.4	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	278.909	-	278.663	2.2	-0.1	-
All items less shelter	242.844	-	242.620	1.5	-0.1	-
Commodities less food	160.703	-	158.605	0.1	-1.3	-
Nondurables	236.822	-	235.209	0.5	-0.7	-
Nondurables less food	191.769	-	190.824	-3.5	-0.5	-
Services less rent of shelter(3)	334.463	-	338.603	1.2	1.2	-
Services less medical care services	355.545	-	357.323	2.3	0.5	-
Energy	286.682	287.950	283.491	-8.8	-1.1	-1.5
All items less energy	287.576	-	287.300	2.6	-0.1	-
All items less food and energy	286.538	-	286.656	2.4	0.0	-
Footnotes (1) Indexes on a November 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) Indexes 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.