News Release Information
12-1819-DAL
Friday, September 14, 2012
Contacts
Further information:
- (972) 850-4800
- BLSInfoDallas@bls.gov
- www.bls.gov/ro6
Consumer Price Index, South Region – August 2012
Prices in the South up 0.6 percent over the month and 1.6 percent over the year
The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the South rose 0.6 percent in August,
the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Stanley W. Suchman noted
that energy prices increased 4.9 percent over the month. Food prices edged up 0.2 percent and the all
items less food and energy index was unchanged since July. Within the all items less food and energy
group, small price increases for components including shelter and education and communication were
offset by declines in prices for others such as medical care and recreation.
(Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect the
impact of seasonal influences.)
Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U advanced 1.6 percent. The index for all items less food and energy
rose 1.9 percent over the year.(See chart 1.)
Food
Food prices increased 0.2 percent in August as prices for both food at home and food away from home
edged up (0.2 percent each).
Since August 2011, the index for food advanced 2.1 percent. Prices for food away from home and food
at home increased 2.7 and 1.7 percent, respectively.
Energy
The energy index increased 4.9 percent in August, dominated by an 8.3-percent rise in motor fuel prices.
Utility (piped) gas service prices rose 4.2 percent, while prices for electricity inched down 0.1 percent
over the month.
Over the year, energy prices decreased 1.6 percent, primarily reflecting declines in electricity and utility
(piped) gas service, down 1.8 and 11.6 percent, respectively. Motor fuel prices edged down 0.2 percent
over the year.
All items less food and energy
The index for all items less food and energy was unchanged in August, as small increases for a few
components including shelter (0.1 percent) and education and communication (0.3 percent) were offset
by price decreases led by medical care (-0.4 percent).
Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 1.9 percent, led by price increases
for shelter (2.2 percent) and medical care (4.0 percent).
Month |
2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1-month | 12-month | 1-month | 12-month | 1-month | 12-month | 1-month | 12-month | 1-month | 12-month | 1-month | 12-month | |
January |
0.1 | 1.8 | 0.5 | 4.9 | 0.4 | -0.1 | 0.3 | 2.8 | 0.5 | 1.7 | 0.5 | 3.2 |
February |
0.5 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 4.6 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 2.3 | 0.5 | 2.2 | 0.6 | 3.3 |
March |
1.0 | 2.6 | 0.8 | 4.4 | 0.3 | -0.3 | 0.6 | 2.5 | 1.2 | 2.8 | 0.7 | 2.8 |
April |
0.9 | 2.5 | 0.7 | 4.2 | 0.3 | -0.7 | 0.1 | 2.4 | 0.7 | 3.4 | 0.4 | 2.5 |
May |
0.6 | 2.7 | 0.9 | 4.6 | 0.3 | -1.3 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0.5 | 4.0 | -0.4 | 1.6 |
June |
0.4 | 2.7 | 1.1 | 5.3 | 1.0 | -1.4 | -0.1 | 0.9 | -0.2 | 3.8 | -0.2 | 1.7 |
July |
-0.1 | 2.3 | 0.5 | 5.8 | -0.3 | -2.1 | -0.1 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 4.1 | -0.2 | 1.4 |
August |
-0.3 | 2.0 | -0.4 | 5.6 | 0.1 | -1.6 | 0.2 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 4.3 | 0.6 | 1.6 |
September |
0.3 | 3.0 | 0.1 | 5.4 | 0.0 | -1.8 | 0.2 | 1.4 | 0.0 | 4.1 | - | - |
October |
0.2 | 3.8 | -1.2 | 3.9 | 0.2 | -0.4 | 0.1 | 1.3 | -0.2 | 3.7 | - | - |
November |
0.6 | 4.7 | -2.2 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 1.1 | 0.0 | 3.8 | - | - |
December |
0.0 | 4.4 | -1.0 | 0.0 | -0.1 | 2.9 | 0.2 | 1.4 | -0.2 | 3.3 | - | - |
The September 2012 Consumer Price Index for the South region is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, October 16, 2012 at 7:30 a.m. (CT).
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 88 percent of the total
population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers 29
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 87 urban areas across the country from about 4,000 housing units and
approximately 26,000 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 the 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/pdf/homch17.pdf.
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 South region is comprised of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia,
Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee,
Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice
phone: (202) 691-5200; TDD message referral phone number: (800) 877-8339.
For personal assistance or further information on Consumer Price Indexes, as well as other Bureau
products, contact the Southwest Information Office at (972) 850-4800 from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and
1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. CT.
Item and Group |
Indexes |
Percent change from- | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jun. 2012 |
Jul. 2012 |
Aug. 2012 |
Aug. 2011 |
Jun. 2012 |
Jul. 2012 |
|
Expenditure category |
||||||
All Items |
223.004 | 222.667 | 223.919 | 1.6 | 0.4 | 0.6 |
All items (December 1977=100) |
361.744 | 361.197 | 363.228 | |||
Food and beverages |
231.951 | 231.977 | 232.303 | 2.0 | 0.2 | 0.1 |
Food |
232.986 | 233.034 | 233.486 | 2.1 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
Food at home |
229.811 | 229.606 | 230.036 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 0.2 |
Food away from home |
240.314 | 240.756 | 241.247 | 2.7 | 0.4 | 0.2 |
Alcoholic beverages |
216.868 | 216.560 | 215.009 | 1.0 | -0.9 | -0.7 |
Housing |
207.997 | 208.087 | 208.260 | 1.5 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
Shelter |
230.470 | 231.018 | 231.197 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 0.1 |
Rent of primary residence (1) |
231.863 | 232.700 | 232.796 | 2.2 | 0.4 | 0.0 |
233.718 | 234.211 | 234.868 | 2.1 | 0.5 | 0.3 | |
233.703 | 234.195 | 234.854 | 2.1 | 0.5 | 0.3 | |
Fuels and utilities |
225.946 | 223.698 | 224.660 | -1.2 | -0.6 | 0.4 |
Household energy |
190.640 | 187.787 | 188.566 | -3.1 | -1.1 | 0.4 |
Energy services (1) |
190.530 | 187.611 | 188.379 | -3.2 | -1.1 | 0.4 |
Electricity (1) |
191.785 | 188.364 | 188.164 | -1.8 | -1.9 | -0.1 |
Utility (piped) gas service (1) |
166.529 | 167.119 | 174.145 | -11.6 | 4.6 | 4.2 |
Household furnishings and operations |
126.525 | 126.687 | 126.228 | 0.5 | -0.2 | -0.4 |
Apparel |
134.757 | 130.628 | 130.673 | -0.7 | -3.0 | 0.0 |
Transportation |
213.034 | 212.387 | 218.593 | 0.9 | 2.6 | 2.9 |
Private transportation |
211.190 | 210.708 | 217.218 | 1.1 | 2.9 | 3.1 |
New and used motor vehicles (3) |
102.441 | 102.371 | 102.167 | 0.3 | -0.3 | -0.2 |
New vehicles |
149.780 | 149.165 | 148.974 | 1.1 | -0.5 | -0.1 |
101.889 | 101.467 | 101.355 | 1.1 | -0.5 | -0.1 | |
New cars (4) |
153.525 | 152.850 | 152.604 | 0.2 | -0.6 | -0.2 |
Used cars and trucks |
153.513 | 154.020 | 153.174 | -0.1 | -0.2 | -0.5 |
Motor fuel |
290.491 | 288.059 | 311.984 | -0.2 | 7.4 | 8.3 |
Gasoline (all types) |
289.064 | 286.683 | 310.801 | -0.3 | 7.5 | 8.4 |
Unleaded regular (4) |
287.841 | 285.586 | 309.802 | -0.4 | 7.6 | 8.5 |
301.525 | 298.567 | 323.485 | -0.3 | 7.3 | 8.3 | |
Unleaded premium (4) |
286.322 | 283.928 | 307.045 | 0.4 | 7.2 | 8.1 |
Medical Care |
397.266 | 397.983 | 396.445 | 4.0 | -0.2 | -0.4 |
Medical care commodities |
314.938 | 316.520 | 315.740 | 3.3 | 0.3 | -0.2 |
Medical care services |
425.349 | 425.666 | 423.823 | 4.2 | -0.4 | -0.4 |
Professional services |
343.929 | 343.948 | 345.137 | 2.6 | 0.4 | 0.3 |
Recreation (3) |
115.108 | 114.859 | 114.747 | 0.9 | -0.3 | -0.1 |
Education and communication (3) |
130.225 | 130.080 | 130.494 | 1.8 | 0.2 | 0.3 |
Other goods and services |
385.413 | 385.498 | 385.888 | 2.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
Commodity and Service Group |
||||||
All Items |
223.004 | 222.667 | 223.919 | 1.6 | 0.4 | 0.6 |
Commodities |
187.647 | 186.881 | 189.172 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 1.2 |
Commodities less food & beverages |
164.918 | 163.844 | 166.892 | 0.2 | 1.2 | 1.9 |
Nondurables less food & beverages |
216.525 | 214.331 | 221.052 | 0.5 | 2.1 | 3.1 |
Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel |
266.640 | 265.471 | 276.044 | 0.8 | 3.5 | 4.0 |
Durables |
116.641 | 116.638 | 116.168 | -0.4 | -0.4 | -0.4 |
Services |
259.297 | 259.363 | 259.643 | 2.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
Rent of shelter (2) |
236.795 | 237.356 | 237.539 | 2.1 | 0.3 | 0.1 |
Transportation services |
285.464 | 285.620 | 286.428 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 0.3 |
Other services |
311.814 | 311.721 | 312.393 | 2.3 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
Special aggregate indexes: |
||||||
All items less medical care |
213.180 | 212.801 | 214.159 | 1.4 | 0.5 | 0.6 |
All items less food |
221.242 | 220.845 | 222.221 | 1.5 | 0.4 | 0.6 |
All items less shelter |
221.527 | 220.816 | 222.527 | 1.3 | 0.5 | 0.8 |
Commodities less food |
166.682 | 165.624 | 168.563 | 0.2 | 1.1 | 1.8 |
Nondurables |
224.437 | 223.255 | 227.061 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 1.7 |
Nondurables less food |
216.356 | 214.258 | 220.558 | 0.6 | 1.9 | 2.9 |
Nondurables less food and apparel |
261.156 | 260.061 | 269.638 | 0.9 | 3.2 | 3.7 |
Services less rent of shelter (2) |
295.752 | 295.188 | 295.602 | 2.0 | -0.1 | 0.1 |
Services less medical care services |
244.309 | 244.358 | 244.760 | 1.9 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
Energy |
232.149 | 229.546 | 240.837 | -1.6 | 3.7 | 4.9 |
All items less energy |
222.610 | 222.541 | 222.605 | 1.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
All items less food and energy |
221.168 | 221.077 | 221.072 | 1.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Commodities less food and energy commodities |
150.265 | 149.402 | 149.052 | 0.4 | -0.8 | -0.2 |
Energy commodities |
294.413 | 291.982 | 315.756 | -0.3 | 7.2 | 8.1 |
Services less energy services |
266.295 | 266.713 | 266.935 | 2.5 | 0.2 | 0.1 |
Footnotes |
||||||
Regions defined as the four Census regions. South includes Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia. |
Last Modified Date: September 14, 2012