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News Release Information

23-2006-SAN
Wednesday, September 13, 2023

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

Consumer Price Index, Seattle area — August 2023

Area prices were up 0.8 percent over the past two months, up 5.4 percent from a year ago

Prices in the Seattle area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), increased 0.8 percent for the two months ending in August 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that the August increase was influenced by higher prices for medical care, 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 advanced 5.4 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) Food prices increased 4.0 percent. Energy prices increased 6.3 percent, largely the result of an increase in the price of natural gas service. The index for all items less food and energy rose 5.7 percent over the year. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices increased 1.0 percent for the two months ending in August. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home rose 0.7 percent, with higher prices in three of the six subcategories. Prices for food away from home increased 1.4 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices increased 4.0 percent. Prices for food at home rose 1.5 percent since a year ago, led by higher prices for cereals and bakery products (6.4 percent). Prices for food away from home advanced 7.7 percent.

Energy

The energy index advanced 2.8 percent for the two months ending in August. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for gasoline (4.4 percent). Prices for electricity and natural gas service were both unchanged for the same period.

Energy prices increased 6.3 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for natural gas service (26.0 percent). Prices paid for electricity increased 7.4 percent, and prices for gasoline increased 4.3 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 0.7 percent in the latest two-month period. Higher prices for medical care (6.1 percent) and shelter (0.4 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for used cars and trucks (-0.7 percent) and recreation (-0.4 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 5.7 percent. Components contributing to the increase included recreation (8.4 percent) and shelter (8.0 percent). Partly offsetting the increases were price decreases in used cars and trucks (-6.2 percent) and household furnishings and operations (-1.2 percent).

Table A. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA, CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted
Month 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
2-month 12-month 2-month 12-month 2-month 12-month 2-month 12-month 2-month 12-month

February

0.7 2.7 1.0 2.5 1.2 1.7 1.7 8.1 1.4 8.0

April

0.5 2.4 -0.6 1.3 1.1 3.4 2.1 9.1 1.0 6.9

June

0.7 2.3 0.2 0.9 2.2 5.5 3.2 10.1 1.0 4.6

August

0.6 3.2 1.4 1.6 1.1 5.2 0.0 9.0 0.8 5.4

October

-0.6 2.2 -0.1 2.1 1.1 6.5 1.0 8.9

December

-0.3 2.2 -0.4 1.4 0.6 7.6 0.1 8.4

The October 2023 Consumer Price Index for the Seattle area is scheduled to be released on November 14, 2023.


Technical Note

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 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 individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

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-
Historical
data
Jun.
2023
Jul.
2023
Aug.
2023
Aug.
2022
Jun.
2023
Jul.
2023

Expenditure category

All items

341.734 - 344.449 5.4 0.8 -

All items (1967=100)

1,041.737 - 1,050.014 - - -

Food and beverages

354.681 - 357.635 4.2 0.8 -

Food

357.611 - 361.063 4.0 1.0 -

Food at home

320.164 316.375 322.417 1.5 0.7 1.9

Cereals and bakery products

381.218 366.178 375.601 6.4 -1.5 2.6

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

283.915 286.151 289.296 -2.2 1.9 1.1

Dairy and related products

284.430 282.867 294.995 5.7 3.7 4.3

Fruits and vegetables

490.926 488.925 488.998 0.0 -0.4 0.0

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

416.516 399.480 410.339 3.4 -1.5 2.7

Other food at home

252.448 250.924 256.334 1.2 1.5 2.2

Food away from home

415.872 - 421.835 7.7 1.4 -

Alcoholic beverages

314.675 - 313.221 7.1 -0.5 -

Housing

408.248 - 409.535 6.8 0.3 -

Shelter

468.014 468.352 469.773 8.0 0.4 0.3

Rent of primary residence(2)

472.469 473.327 474.804 9.1 0.5 0.3

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

487.953 490.111 491.664 8.4 0.8 0.3

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

487.953 490.111 491.664 8.4 0.8 0.3

Fuels and utilities

330.003 - 330.401 7.8 0.1 -

Household energy

299.043 299.319 299.656 10.5 0.2 0.1

Energy services(2)

351.757 351.757 351.757 11.9 0.0 0.0

Electricity(2)

363.093 363.093 363.093 7.4 0.0 0.0

Utility (piped) gas service(2)

236.928 236.928 236.928 26.0 0.0 0.0

Household furnishings and operations

228.904 - 228.934 -1.2 0.0 -

Apparel

133.053 - 133.219 2.4 0.1 -

Transportation

300.377 - 303.046 2.8 0.9 -

Private transportation

314.359 - 318.971 2.3 1.5 -

New and used motor vehicles(4)

128.069 - 127.657 -0.1 -0.3 -

New vehicles(1)

225.150 - 225.066 3.0 0.0 -

Used cars and trucks(1)

461.673 - 458.442 -6.2 -0.7 -

Motor fuel

540.728 554.015 564.165 3.8 4.3 1.8

Gasoline (all types)

551.912 565.930 576.075 4.3 4.4 1.8

Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)

599.220 614.384 625.128 4.3 4.3 1.7

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

434.728 447.354 455.559 4.1 4.8 1.8

Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)

507.440 520.360 530.592 4.4 4.6 2.0

Medical care

428.080 - 454.355 4.6 6.1 -

Recreation(6)

121.981 - 121.434 8.4 -0.4 -

Education and communication(6)

147.136 - 147.978 - 0.6 -

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

- - - - - -

Other goods and services

509.841 - 519.521 - 1.9 -

Commodity and service group

All items

341.734 - 344.449 5.4 0.8 -

Commodities

245.920 - 247.684 1.6 0.7 -

Commodities less food & beverages

194.193 - 195.458 -0.3 0.7 -

Nondurables less food & beverages

231.536 - 235.994 3.3 1.9 -

Durables

157.164 - 156.492 -3.1 -0.4 -

Services

430.180 - 433.822 7.7 0.8 -

Special aggregate indexes

All items less medical care

338.085 - 339.783 5.5 0.5 -

All items less shelter

292.938 - 296.011 3.9 1.0 -

Commodities less food

198.873 - 200.057 0.0 0.6 -

Nondurables

291.031 - 294.870 4.0 1.3 -

Nondurables less food

238.565 - 242.567 3.5 1.7 -

Services less rent of shelter(3)

394.076 - 400.554 7.5 1.6 -

Services less medical care services

426.221 - 428.116 8.1 0.4 -

Energy

428.895 435.570 440.739 6.3 2.8 1.2

All items less energy

341.254 - 343.626 5.4 0.7 -

All items less food and energy

338.646 - 340.852 5.7 0.7 -

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.

 

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, September 13, 2023