The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Dallas-Fort Worth area rose 1.3 percent in August and September, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Stanley W. Suchman noted that the increase followed two consecutive periods of decline. The biggest factor in the August-September movement was a 6.1-percent advance in the energy index, which accounted for one-half of the total increase. Higher prices were also reported for all items less food and energy (0.8 percent) and food (0.5 percent). (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, short-term changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the all items CPI-U rose 2.3 percent in Dallas-Fort Worth, a sharp increase from July’s annual rate of 1.3 percent, though well below most gains recorded since May 2011. The latest acceleration was mainly the result of a turnaround in energy costs which moved up 0.9 percent after registering over-the-year declines in the two previous periods. Prices for all items less food and energy rose at about the same pace as recent periods, up 2.4 percent during the last 12 months. (See chart 1.)

Food

Local food prices rose 0.5 percent in August and September after increasing 0.4 percent in June and July. Among the two components of the index, prices for food away from home climbed 1.0 percent while prices for food at home (grocery stores) edged up 0.2 percent. Within the grocery group, higher prices were noted for chicken, but lower prices were registered for ground beef.

From September 2011 to September 2012, the food index was up 2.2 percent, reflecting the combined effects of a 2.4-percent price rise at grocery stores and a 2.0-percent price rise for food away from home. Annual increases for grocery items have been less than 4.0 percent since March of this year, a marked slowdown from the recent peak of 7.0 percent recorded in October 2011.

Energy

The energy index rose 6.1 percent in August and September following a 4.2-percent decline in June and July. The increase was primarily the result of a 10.1-percent surge in gasoline prices, though costs for natural gas climbed 9.9 percent. Electricity prices fell 1.3 percent in August and September.

Over the year, total energy costs rose 0.9 percent, the first annual increase since April 2012. Gasoline prices were up 6.8 percent, also the first annual rise since April. In contrast, costs for natural gas and electricity continued to fall on an annual basis. Natural gas costs dropped 37.1 percent over the year and electricity costs fell 2.2 percent.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy was up 0.8 percent in August and September, after registering little change in the two previous bimonthly periods. A 9.7-percent advance in apparel prices was responsible for more than one-half of the total increase. Higher prices were most notable for women’s clothing, reflecting in part the introduction of new fall and winter lines. Another important factor in the latest gain was a 1.0-percent rise in shelter costs. Offsetting a portion of these increases, medical care prices fell 0.8 percent during the two-month period.

From September 2011 to September 2012, the index for all items less food and energy rose 2.4 percent, in line with the annual rates of increase experienced throughout 2012. The leading factor in the current gain was a 4.0-percent advance in shelter costs, the fastest 12-month increase since the year ended in March 2009. Higher prices for motor vehicle insurance and medical care services were also large contributors. Despite the bimonthly increase in clothing prices, the apparel index declined 0.8 percent over the year, the only component to record an annual decline.

Next Release Date: The November 2012 Consumer Price Index for All Items for Dallas-Fort Worth will be released on December 12, 2012.

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 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/homch17_a.htm.

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 Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area (CMSA) includes Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Henderson, Hood, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, and Tarrant Counties.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral phone number: 1-800-877-8339.

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.

Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods,
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX, (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes				Percent change from -
	Historical data	Jul. 2012	Aug. 2012	Sep. 2012	Sep. 2011	Jul. 2012	Aug. 2012
All items		211.267		214.033	2.3	1.3
All items (1967 = 100)		662.732		671.410
Food and beverages		236.688		238.012	2.3	0.6
Food		231.479		232.695	2.2	0.5
Food at home		212.373	211.183	212.745	2.4	0.2	0.7
Food away from home		261.298		263.812	2.0	1.0
Alcoholic beverages		305.252		308.781	3.3	1.2
Housing		185.272		185.735	1.8	0.2
Shelter		194.494	194.898	196.398	4.0	1.0	0.8
Rent of primary residence (1)		199.259	199.613	200.341	4.4	0.5	0.4
Owners' equivalent rent of residences (1) (2)		209.813	210.342	211.971	4.1	1.0	0.8
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence (1) (2)		209.813	210.342	211.971	4.1	1.0	0.8
Fuels and utilities		211.968		212.198	-5.3	0.1
Household energy		200.430	201.581	200.477	-8.0	0.0	-0.5
Energy services (1) (3)		196.552	197.676	196.546	-8.3	0.0	-0.6
Electricity (1)		191.766	191.282	189.364	-2.2	-1.3	-1.0
Utility (piped) gas service (1)		169.447	181.493	186.245	-37.1	9.9	2.6
Household furnishings and operations		136.488		130.778	-2.9	-4.2
Apparel		109.112		119.727	-0.8	9.7
Transportation		219.503		228.312	4.8	4.0
Private transportation		221.495		230.306	5.6	4.0
Motor fuel		301.817	320.467	331.929	7.0	10.0	3.6
Gasoline (all types)		299.881	318.622	330.047	6.8	10.1	3.6
Gasoline, unleaded regular (4)		296.129	314.628	325.478	6.9	9.9	3.4
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (4) (5)		301.370	320.827	333.732	6.6	10.7	4.0
Gasoline, unleaded premium (4)		296.071	313.977	326.191	6.4	10.2	3.9
Medical care		379.443		376.498	2.7	-0.8
Recreation (6)		110.110		111.189	2.2	1.0
Education and communication (6)		138.482		138.851	0.4	0.3
Other goods and services		366.982		370.271	5.6	0.9
COMMODITY AND SERVICE GROUP
Commodities		182.384		186.142	2.0	2.1
Commodities less food and beverages		155.833		160.476	1.9	3.0
Nondurables less food and beverages		188.517		200.219	3.8	6.2
Durables		128.472		124.165	-2.4	-3.4
Services		239.768		241.650	2.5	0.8
SPECIAL AGGREGATE INDEXES
All items less shelter		219.650		222.837	1.6	1.5
All items less medical care		202.944		205.910	2.3	1.5
Commodities less food		160.189		164.867	1.9	2.9
Nondurables		211.514		218.908	3.1	3.5
Nondurables less food		194.877		206.503	3.8	6.0
Services less rent of shelter (2)		305.151		306.911	1.0	0.6
Services less medical care services		225.830		227.674	2.4	0.8
Energy		251.470	261.458	266.701	0.9	6.1	2.0
All items less energy		211.076		212.619	2.4	0.7
All items less food and energy		207.747		209.350	2.4	0.8
Footnotes (1) This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means estimator. (2) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base. (3) Prior to January 2011 this series was titled Gas (piped) and electricity. (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.
Note: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.

Last Modified Date: October 16, 2012