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News Release Information

23-1794-PHI
Thursday, August 10, 2023

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:

Consumer Price Index, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area – July 2023

Area prices were down 0.1 percent over the past 2 months, up 1.8 percent from a year ago

Prices in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), decreased 0.1 percent for the 2 months ending in July 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that the July decline was due in large part to falling prices for recreation and lodging away from home. The all items less food and energy index, which includes the forementioned categories, contributed the most to the decrease as it fell 0.2 percent. Declining prices in the food index, down 0.3 percent, also contributed to the overall index decrease. Tempering the fall was the energy index, up 2.4 percent, continuing the trend of increases since March’s 3.7 percent decrease. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U index advanced 1.8 percent — the smallest rise in 2 years. The all items less food and energy index was mainly responsible for the total increase as it rose 2.9 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) Food prices were up 2.1 percent over the year, well below last July’s peak of 8.9 percent. The energy index declined 12.6 percent, holding down the overall all items index change, largely due to lower gasoline prices. (See table 1.)

Food

The food index fell 0.3 percent over the last 2 months. Prices for food at home were down 0.5 percent—continuing a trend of declines since March 2023. Within the food at home category, meats, poultry, fish, and eggs prices decreased 1.6 percent, largely due to falling prices for chicken and fresh fish and seafood. Other food at home was down 1.3 percent, recording the index’s first decline of the year. Cereals and bakery products prices also declined (-2.1 percent). The remaining grocery categories had rising prices, such as fruits and vegetables (+1.7 percent) and nonalcoholic beverages (+2.0 percent). For the same period, food away from home advanced 0.2 percent.

From July 2022 to July 2023, food prices increased 2.1 percent. Food away from home increased as well, up 5.9 percent. With the first over-the-year decrease this year, the food at home index (-0.2 percent) tempered the overall index rise. Declining prices in meats, poultry, fish, and eggs led the drop (-2.9 percent). The cereals and bakery products and dairy and related products indexes both decreased 1.9 percent and fell for the first time since 2021. Partially offsetting the fall in food at home prices were other food at home, up 1.2 percent (smallest 12-month increase since July 2021), fruits and vegetables (+2.0 percent), and nonalcoholic beverages (+2.1 percent).

Energy

The energy index advanced 2.4 percent for the 2 months ending in July. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for gasoline (+2.6 percent). The index for utility (piped) gas rose 3.5 percent and the electricity index increased 2.2 percent, but fuel oil prices fell during the same period.

Energy prices fell 12.6 percent over the year, largely due to lower prices for gasoline (-21.5 percent). All of the over-the-year percent changes in the gasoline index have declined since March. The natural gas service index followed the same pattern, down 16.7 percent since July 2022. Prices for the electricity index increased 4.4 percent—the smallest 12-month increase in over a year and a half.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy was down 0.2 percent in the latest 2-month period. Lower prices for recreation (-2.1 percent), led the overall index decline. Other lower prices included lodging away from home, apparel (down 1.8 percent), education and communication (down 0.4 percent), and household furnishings and operations (-0.4 percent). The overall index decline was partly offset by rising prices in shelter, up 0.2 percent. Within the shelter index, owners’ equivalent rent of residences increased (+0.9 percent) as did rent of primary residence (+0.2 percent). Higher prices were also noted in medical care (+0.5 percent) and other goods and services (+0.8 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy increased 2.9 percent. The 12-month percent change for the all items less food and energy index has been higher than the all items index since March. The July rise was primarily due to a 5.0-percent rise in the shelter index, as owners’ equivalent rent of residences was up 5.6 percent and the index for rent of primary residence advanced 5.2 percent. Other components contributing to the increase in all items less food and energy included tuition, other school fees, and childcare (+6.3 percent); apparel (+7.1 percent); and other goods and services (+4.5 percent). Moderating the rise in the overall index was medical care, down 4.9 percent, the third consecutive decrease and the largest over-the-year decline in the history of the series.

Table A. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV, 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

January

0.5 0.8 0.5 1.6 0.7 1.5 0.9 6.0 -0.2 4.4

March

0.7 1.6 -0.4 0.4 0.7 2.6 1.9 7.3 1.3 3.7

May

0.6 1.6 0.1 -0.1 1.3 3.8 1.5 7.5 0.9 3.1

July

-0.3 1.2 0.6 0.8 1.2 4.4 1.1 7.5 -0.1 1.8

September

0.1 0.9 0.6 1.2 0.7 4.5 -0.2 6.5

November

-0.2 1.5 0.0 1.4 1.2 5.8 0.3 5.6

The September 2023 Consumer Price Index for the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area is scheduled to be released on October 12, 2023.


Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index for Washington-Arlington-Alexandria is published bi-monthly. 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 89 percent of the total population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers 28 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 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV, Core Based Statistical Area includes the District of Columbia; the counties of Calvert, Charles, Frederick, Montgomery, and Prince George’s in Maryland; the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Fredericksburg, Manassas, and Manassas Park and the counties of Arlington, Clarke, Culpeper, Fairfax, Fauquier, Loudoun, Prince William, Rappahannock, Spotsylvania, Stafford, and Warren in Virginia; and the county of Jefferson in West Virginia.

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, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV, (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted) (not seasonally adjusted)
Expenditure category Indexes Percent change from
Historical
data
May
2023
Jun.
2023
Jul.
2023
Jul.
2022
May
2023
Jun.
2023

All items

305.614   305.273 1.8 -0.1  

Food and beverages

299.681   299.058 2.2 -0.2  

Food

308.473   307.701 2.1 -0.3  

Food at home

288.637 286.426 287.050 -0.2 -0.5 0.2

Cereals and bakery products

384.528 363.758 376.565 -1.9 -2.1 3.5

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

308.310 308.380 303.320 -2.9 -1.6 -1.6

Dairy and related products

285.776 287.288 283.369 -1.9 -0.8 -1.4

Fruits and vegetables

290.096 296.185 294.938 2.0 1.7 -0.4

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

248.439 253.370 253.452 2.1 2.0 0.0

Other food at home

249.193 242.865 245.883 1.2 -1.3 1.2

Food away from home

335.461   336.250 5.9 0.2  

Alcoholic beverages

218.372   219.764 2.8 0.6  

Housing

317.141   318.084 4.0 0.3  

Shelter

376.936 377.315 377.786 5.0 0.2 0.1

Rent of primary residence

406.447 406.596 407.067 5.2 0.2 0.1

Owners' equivalent rent of residences(2)

384.143 385.994 387.742 5.6 0.9 0.5

Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(2)

384.143 385.994 387.742 5.6 0.9 0.5

Fuels and utilities

282.792   288.636 -1.2 2.1  

Household energy

224.849 236.048 229.662 -3.0 2.1 -2.7

Energy services

229.686 242.084 235.512 -2.1 2.5 -2.7

Electricity

250.301 270.022 255.841 4.4 2.2 -5.3

Utility (piped) gas service

174.406 170.535 180.559 -16.7 3.5 5.9

Household furnishings and operations

130.324   129.812 1.3 -0.4  

Apparel

165.156   162.179 7.1 -1.8  

Transportation

270.876   269.264 -2.0 -0.6  

Private transportation

281.763   281.504 -1.5 -0.1  

New and used motor vehicles(3)

130.158   128.387 0.4 -1.4  

New vehicles(1)

231.418   231.770 2.2 0.2  

Used cars and trucks(1)

431.946   435.131 -5.7 0.7  

Motor fuel

329.045 329.630 337.595 -21.4 2.6 2.4

Gasoline (all types)

324.499 325.126 333.051 -21.5 2.6 2.4

Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)

316.884 317.596 325.476 -21.8 2.7 2.5

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

332.687 333.012 339.680 -20.3 2.1 2.0

Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)

347.978 347.833 355.333 -18.7 2.1 2.2

Medical care

513.052   515.598 -4.9 0.5  

Recreation(3)

127.997   125.310 1.8 -2.1  

Education and communication(3)

165.602   164.930 2.0 -0.4  

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

1,585.466   1,608.740 6.3 1.5  

Other goods and services

499.127   502.878 4.5 0.8  

Commodity and service group

Commodities

214.570   213.467 -0.7 -0.5  

Commodities less food and beverages

172.176   170.927 -2.3 -0.7  

Nondurables less food and beverages

222.817   221.599 -4.1 -0.5  

Durables

123.845   122.727 -0.7 -0.9  

Services

386.777   387.196 3.3 0.1  

Special aggregate indexes

All items less shelter

276.134   275.278 0.1 -0.3  

All items less medical care

295.933   295.444 2.4 -0.2  

Commodities less food

174.191   173.004 -2.2 -0.7  

Nondurables

260.066   259.155 -0.8 -0.4  

Nondurables less food

221.946   220.895 -3.6 -0.5  

Services less rent of shelter(2)

409.411   409.367 1.1 0.0  

Services less medical care services

374.126   374.606 4.6 0.1  

Energy

276.671 284.049 283.204 -12.6 2.4 -0.3

All items less energy

312.102   311.324 2.8 -0.2  

All items less food and energy

314.002   313.219 2.9 -0.2  

Footnotes
(1) Indexes on a November 1977=100 base.
(2) Indexes on a November 1982=100 base.
(3) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
(4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample.
(5) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.

 

Last Modified Date: Thursday, August 10, 2023