The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Midwest registered little movement in April (down 0.1 percent), the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Stanley W. Suchman noted that lower costs for motor fuel (-2.6 percent) had the largest downward impact on the index while prices for utility (piped) gas service (2.8 percent) registered the largest offsetting movement. Overall, the energy index was down 1.5 percent in April. The index for food was unchanged and prices for all items less food and energy were virtually unchanged (0.1 percent).

The CPI-U for the Midwest rose 1.2 percent from April 2012 to April 2013. Food prices were up 1.3 percent while the energy index, which includes motor fuel and household fuels, declined 2.9 percent. Excluding food and energy, the CPI-U increased 1.7 percent over the year. (See chart 1.)

Food

Food prices in the Midwest were unchanged in April. The indexes for food at home and for food away from home each registered no movement over the month.

From April 2012 to April 2013, the index for food was up 1.3 percent. Rising costs for food away from home accounted for over two-thirds of the gain, increasing 2.5 percent. Higher prices for food at home (0.6 percent) also contributed to the over-the-year advance.

Energy

The energy index for the Midwest decreased 1.5 percent in April. Motor fuel prices led the downward movement with a decline of 2.6 percent and costs for electricity were 1.2 percent lower than the previous month. In contrast, the index for utility (piped) gas service was up 2.8 percent over the month.

Energy costs declined 2.9 percent from April 2012 to April 2013 reflecting a 6.7-percent decrease in motor fuel prices. Conversely, prices for utility (piped) gas service increased 10.7 percent, the largest over-the-year gain since November 2008. Electricity costs were 0.9 percent higher than one year ago.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy for the Midwest was virtually unchanged (up 0.1 percent) in April. Components registering higher prices over the month included owners’ equivalent rent of residences (0.2 percent), apparel (0.8 percent), used cars and trucks (1.0 percent), and recreation (0.2 percent). Education and communication (-0.3 percent) was among the expenditure categories posting lower prices over the month.

The index for all items less food and energy was up 1.7 percent from April 2012 to April 2013. Higher costs for owners’ equivalent rent of residences (2.1 percent) and medical care (3.5 percent) led the advance.

The Midwest Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) stood at 221.931 in April 2013. A typical market basket of goods and services that cost $100.00 in the 1982-84 base period cost $221.93 in April 2013. Because regional CPI data are not adjusted for seasonal price variation, consumers and businesses should be cautious in drawing conclusions about long-term retail price trends from short-term changes in the regional indexes.

Table A. Midwest Region CPI-U monthly and annual percent changes (not seasonally adjusted)

Month	2008		2009		2010		2011		2012		2013
	Monthly	Annual	Monthly	Annual	Monthly	Annual	Monthly	Annual	Monthly	Annual	Monthly	Annual
January	0.6	4.3	0.6	-0.3	0.5	2.9	0.5	1.9	0.6	2.8	0.1	1.3
February	0.2	3.8	0.3	-0.2	0.0	2.5	0.3	2.2	0.2	2.7	1.1	2.2
March	0.9	3.7	0.3	-0.8	0.4	2.6	0.9	2.7	1.0	2.8	0.2	1.4
April	0.8	4.0	0.2	-1.5	0.2	2.7	0.7	3.3	0.2	2.3	-0.1	1.2
May	0.9	4.0	0.4	-1.9	0.1	2.4	0.6	3.8	-0.1	1.5
June	0.9	4.9	1.1	-1.7	0.0	1.2	0.0	3.9	-0.1	1.4
July	0.5	5.6	-0.3	-2.5	0.2	1.7	0.1	3.8	0.0	1.3
August	-0.3	5.4	0.4	-1.8	0.2	1.5	0.2	3.8	0.7	1.8
September	0.0	4.8	0.0	-1.7	0.1	1.6	0.2	3.9	0.3	1.9
October	-1.5	3.3	0.1	-0.2	0.0	1.5	-0.6	3.3	-0.3	2.2
November	-2.1	0.5	0.3	2.2	0.1	1.2	0.0	3.3	-0.4	1.8
December	-1.1	-0.3	-0.3	3.0	0.2	1.8	-0.2	2.8	-0.2	1.8

CPI-W

In April, the Midwest Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) was 218.210, little changed over the month (down 0.1 percent). The CPI-W increased 0.9 percent over the year.

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The May 2013 Consumer Price Index for the Midwest region is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, June 18, 2013.

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 approximately 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 Midwest region is comprised of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

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