Prices in the San Diego area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), advanced 0.3 percent for the two months ending in July 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that the July increase was influenced by higher prices for recreation and gasoline. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U advanced 4.3 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) Food prices advanced 1.7 percent. Energy prices fell 6.4 percent, largely the result of a decrease in the price of gasoline. The index for all items less food and energy advanced 5.6 percent over the year. (See table 1.)

  

View Chart Data

Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in CPI-U, San Diego-Carlsbad, CA, July 2020–July 2023

Month	All items	All items less food and energy
Jul 2020	2.1	2.5
Sep 2020	1.1	1.5
Nov 2020	1.6	2.2
Jan 2021	1.7	1.5
Mar 2021	4.1	3.2
May 2021	5.3	4.3
Jul 2021	6.0	4.4
Sep 2021	6.5	4.7
Nov 2021	6.6	4.5
Jan 2022	8.2	6.0
Mar 2022	7.9	5.6
May 2022	8.3	5.8
Jul 2022	7.3	5.9
Sep 2022	8.2	7.6
Nov 2022	6.7	6.5
Jan 2023	6.4	6.5
Mar 2023	5.3	6.7
May 2023	5.2	7.1
Jul 2023	4.3	5.6

Food prices advanced 0.6 percent for the two months ending in July. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home advanced 1.0 percent, led by higher prices for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (3.9 percent). Overall, prices rose in five of the six grocery categories. Prices for food away from home declined 0.1 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices advanced 1.7 percent. Prices for food at home advanced 2.2 percent since a year ago, with higher prices for cereals and bakery products (12.0 percent) partially offset by lower prices for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (-6.0 percent). Overall, prices rose in four of the six grocery categories. Prices for food away from home rose 0.9 percent.

The energy index advanced 1.3 percent for the two months ending in July. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for gasoline (2.1 percent). Prices for natural gas service rose 4.1 percent, but prices for electricity decreased 0.3 percent for the same period.

Energy prices fell 6.4 percent over the year, largely due to lower prices for gasoline (-16.2 percent). Prices paid for natural gas service fell 4.1 percent, but prices for electricity increased 16.2 percent during the past year.

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.2 percent in the latest two-month period. Higher prices for recreation (1.7 percent) and shelter (0.1 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for medical care (-1.7 percent) and apparel (-1.3 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 5.6 percent. Components contributing to the increase included shelter (8.9 percent) and household furnishings and operations (5.6 percent). Partly offsetting the increases was a price decrease in used cars and trucks (-5.3 percent).

The September 2023 Consumer Price Index for the San Diego area is scheduled to be released on October 12, 2023.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measures 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 U.S. population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers approximately 29 percent of the total U.S. 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 6,000 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; for most of the CPI-U the reference base is 1982-84 equals 100. An increase of 7 percent from the reference base, for example, is shown as 107.000.  Alternatively, that relationship can also be expressed as the price of a base period market basket of goods and services rising from $100 to $107. For further details see the CPI home page on the Internet at www.bls.gov/cpi and the CPI section of the BLS Handbook of Methods 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 Diego-Carlsbad, CA metropolitan area includes San Diego County in 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 Diego-Carlsbad (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes				Percent change from-
	Historical data	May 2023	Jun. 2023	Jul. 2023	Jul. 2022	May 2023	Jun. 2023
Expenditure category
All items		361.339	-	362.412	4.3	0.3	-
All items (1967=100)		1,221.798	-	1,225.425	-	-	-
Food and beverages		312.595	-	314.561	1.6	0.6	-
Food		310.762	-	312.567	1.7	0.6	-
Food at home		284.213	285.682	286.958	2.2	1.0	0.4
Cereals and bakery products		373.782	378.007	375.087	12.0	0.3	-0.8
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		264.659	268.273	274.934	-6.0	3.9	2.5
Dairy and related products		236.979	237.517	237.722	7.5	0.3	0.1
Fruits and vegetables		292.380	298.401	293.152	1.0	0.3	-1.8
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)		319.434	312.100	314.997	-1.6	-1.4	0.9
Other food at home		279.110	278.993	282.015	4.9	1.0	1.1
Food away from home		342.756	-	342.513	0.9	-0.1	-
Alcoholic beverages		320.355	-	323.968	0.4	1.1	-
Housing		435.491	-	436.348	8.7	0.2	-
Shelter		492.666	493.466	493.354	8.9	0.1	0.0
Rent of primary residence(2)		489.581	490.102	491.218	9.2	0.3	0.2
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)		523.044	522.777	522.874	9.3	0.0	0.0
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)		523.044	522.777	522.874	9.3	0.0	0.0
Fuels and utilities		488.900	-	490.385	10.0	0.3	-
Household energy		495.426	494.973	496.884	11.9	0.3	0.4
Energy services		491.306	490.998	493.378	12.6	0.4	0.5
Electricity		493.909	492.646	492.646	16.2	-0.3	0.0
Utility (piped) gas service		314.878	318.017	327.911	-4.1	4.1	3.1
Household furnishings and operations		216.184	-	217.473	5.6	0.6	-
Apparel		182.725	-	180.436	2.8	-1.3	-
Transportation		291.319	-	294.025	-2.6	0.9	-
Private transportation		289.146	-	293.160	-1.7	1.4	-
New and used motor vehicles(3)		137.595	-	138.150	-0.6	0.4	-
New vehicles(1)		262.512	-	263.106	3.6	0.2	-
Used cars and trucks(1)		331.329	-	334.706	-5.3	1.0	-
Motor fuel		385.381	389.306	393.371	-16.2	2.1	1.0
Gasoline (all types)		384.947	389.154	392.885	-16.2	2.1	1.0
Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)		398.310	402.710	406.670	-16.5	2.1	1.0
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)		336.103	339.617	342.936	-15.7	2.0	1.0
Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)		394.878	399.025	402.446	-15.2	1.9	0.9
Medical care		563.670	-	554.244	2.7	-1.7	-
Recreation(3)		185.060	-	188.211	1.6	1.7	-
Education and communication(3)		141.002	-	141.717	1.3	0.5	-
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)		1,665.240	-	1,665.861	-	0.0	-
Other goods and services		500.676	-	504.259	7.0	0.7	-
Commodity and service group
All items		361.339	-	362.412	4.3	0.3	-
Commodities		243.748	-	244.799	-0.7	0.4	-
Commodities less food & beverages		207.375	-	208.042	-2.2	0.3	-
Nondurables less food & beverages		251.224	-	251.417	-3.4	0.1	-
Durables		163.013	-	163.994	-0.7	0.6	-
Services		464.680	-	465.756	7.1	0.2	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care		351.685	-	353.239	4.4	0.4	-
All items less shelter		308.833	-	310.097	1.5	0.4	-
Commodities less food		212.376	-	213.139	-2.1	0.4	-
Nondurables		283.783	-	284.799	-0.7	0.4	-
Nondurables less food		258.018	-	258.443	-3.1	0.2	-
Services less rent of shelter(2)		453.840	-	455.554	4.4	0.4	-
Services less medical care services		451.607	-	453.592	7.6	0.4	-
Energy		419.892	422.186	425.419	-6.4	1.3	0.8
All items less energy		361.220	-	362.055	5.1	0.2	-
All items less food and energy		371.402	-	372.095	5.6	0.2	-
Footnotes (1) Indexes on a November 1977=100 base. (2) Indexes on a November 1982=100 base. (3) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (5) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
- Data not available NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.