November 17, 2006 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

CPI in October 2006

On a seasonally adjusted basis, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) declined 0.5 percent in October, the same as in September.

[Chart data—TXT]

Energy prices, which declined 7.2 percent in September, fell 7.0 percent in October. Within energy, the index for petroleum-based energy decreased 10.7 percent and the index for energy services declined 2.5 percent.

The food index increased 0.3 percent in October. The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.1 percent in October, following increases of 0.2 percent in each of the three preceding months. Declines in the indexes for apparel and for lodging while away from home were largely responsible for the smaller advance in October.

During the first ten months of 2006, the CPI-U rose at a 2.4-percent seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR). This compares with an increase of 3.4 percent for all of 2005.

For the 12 months ended in October 2006, the CPI-U rose 1.3 percent, as shown in the chart.

These data are from the BLS Consumer Price Index program. To learn more, see "Consumer Price Index: October 2006" (PDF) (TXT), news release USDL 06-1979.