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News Release Information

14-1970-CHI
Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (312) 353-1138

Consumer Price Index, Cleveland-Akron-Lorain – September 2014

The Cleveland-Akron, Ohio, Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) declined 0.5 percent from July to September, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Charlene Peiffer noted that food prices rose 0.4 percent and energy costs fell 6.4 percent over the bi-monthly period. The index for all items less food and energy edged up 0.1 percent. Within this last category, costs were higher for apparel and household furnishings and operations over the two-month period. Shelter prices were lower in September compared to July.  (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

Over the past 12 months the Cleveland area all items CPI-U rose 1.3 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) The energy index declined 0.2 percent from its September 2013 level due to an annual drop in gasoline costs. The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.2 percent over the past 12 months. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices rose 0.4 percent from July to September following a small 0.1-percent increase over the previous bi-monthly period. Between the food index’s two components, prices for food at home (groceries) were unchanged while food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) prices rose 1.0 percent from July to September. Over the year, food at home prices were up 3.3 percent while prices for food away from home rose 2.3 percent. Overall food costs rose 2.9 percent from a year ago.

Energy

The energy index fell 6.4 percent from July to September following a 0.2-percent decline over the previous bi-monthly period. In the recent period, declines in costs for electricity (-9.4 percent), utility (piped) gas service (-8.4 percent), and gasoline (-4.2 percent) were all contributing factors to the decrease in energy costs.

Over the year, the energy index declined 0.2 percent. Annual increases in costs for electricity (1.3 percent), and utility (piped) gas service (10.1 percent), were more than offset by a 4.1 percent drop in gasoline prices.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy edged up 0.1 percent from July to September. Among the index’s components, increases were recorded in apparel (13.2 percent) and household furnishings and operations (1.5 percent). Shelter costs declined 1.3 percent over the bi-monthly period.

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 1.2 percent mostly due to a 2.2-percent annual increase in the cost of shelter. Also contributing, but to a lesser extent, was an annual gain in costs for apparel (2.9 percent).

Table A. Percent Changes in the CPI-U, Cleveland-Akron (not seasonally adjusted)
Expenditure CategoryPercent changes from preceding 2 months12 mo. ended Sep. '14
20132014
Sep.Nov.Jan.Mar.MayJulySep.

All items

-0.4-0.70.31.60.20.5-0.51.3

Food & beverages

-0.10.40.41.20.30.10.42.8

Food

0.00.30.41.30.30.10.42.9

Housing

-1.6-0.30.71.80.21.8-1.82.4

Apparel

8.1-3.3-4.33.5-3.9-1.313.22.9

Transportation

0.0-3.50.62.51.3-1.3-1.5-2.2

Medical care

0.7-0.10.41.7-1.6-0.1-0.5-0.3

Recreation

-0.50.2-0.1-0.81.4-0.20.30.8

Education & communication

0.60.1-0.30.7-0.11.3-0.51.1

Other goods & services

-0.81.00.50.41.3-1.6-0.31.3
 

Special Indexes

 

Energy

-4.7-4.83.58.7-0.2-0.2-6.4-0.2

All items less food & energy

0.1-0.4-0.10.80.20.60.11.2

The November 2014 Consumer Price Index for Cleveland is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, December 17, 2014, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).


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/cpi/.

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 Cleveland-Akron, Ohio consolidated area covered in this release is comprised of Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage, and Summit Counties in Ohio.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods

Cleveland-Akron, OH (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Item and Group

 
Indexes
 
Percent change from-
Jul.
2014
Aug.
2014
Sep.
2014
Sep.
2013
Jul.
2014
Aug.
2014

Expenditure category

 
 

All items

222.410-221.2421.3-0.5-

All items (1967=100)

712.708-708.965---

Food and beverages

246.191-247.1722.80.4-

Food

251.439-252.3982.90.4-

Food at home

247.079246.372246.9733.30.00.2

Food away from home

261.157-263.7662.31.0-

Alcoholic beverages

187.393-188.6422.30.7-

Housing

204.765-201.0762.4-1.8-

Shelter

233.412232.470230.4572.2-1.3-0.9

Rent of primary residence (1)

228.156228.775229.3701.10.50.3

Owners' equiv. rent of residences (1) (2)

224.155223.757224.7191.70.30.4

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence (1) (2)

224.155223.757224.7191.70.30.4

Fuels and utilities

210.447-195.8554.8-6.9-

Household energy

181.068180.373165.1054.6-8.8-8.5

Energy services (1)

179.630178.947163.4274.7-9.0-8.7

Electricity (1)

182.213182.264165.0301.3-9.4-9.5

Utility (piped) gas service (1)

156.991155.426143.80010.1-8.4-7.5

Household furnishings and operations

118.360-120.0920.91.5-

Apparel

125.611-142.2292.913.2-

Transportation

216.229-212.930-2.2-1.5-

Private transportation

217.572-215.180-1.4-1.1-

Motor fuel

355.694346.945340.772-3.9-4.2-1.8

Gasoline (all types)

351.757343.104336.998-4.1-4.2-1.8

Gasoline, unleaded regular (3)

341.855333.001326.758-4.5-4.4-1.9

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (3) (4)

358.330350.835345.323-3.4-3.6-1.6

Gasoline, unleaded premium (3)

340.242333.012328.224-2.7-3.5-1.4

Medical care

393.559-391.432-0.3-0.5-

Recreation (5)

116.089-116.4750.80.3-

Education and communication (5)

126.885-126.1951.1-0.5-

Other goods and services

401.873-400.5651.3-0.3-
 

Commodity and service group

 
 

All items

222.410-221.2421.3-0.5-

Commodities

194.907-196.6711.10.9-

Commodities less food & beverages

167.616-169.6390.01.2-

Nondurables less food & beverages

222.780-226.4950.11.7-

Durables

110.636-111.2300.60.5-

Services

250.985-247.1751.5-1.5-
 

Special aggregate indexes

 
 

All items less medical care

214.501-213.3771.4-0.5-

All items less shelter

220.066-219.6240.9-0.2-

Commodities less food

168.588-170.5920.11.2-

Nondurables

235.719-238.1501.41.0-

Nondurables less food

220.143-223.6900.21.6-

Services less rent of shelter (2)

275.457-270.6850.7-1.7-

Services less medical care services

240.070-236.0831.7-1.7-

Energy

246.910243.271231.133-0.2-6.4-5.0

All items less energy

222.074-222.3141.50.1-

All items less food and energy

217.056-217.1781.20.1-

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) Index is on a December 1982=100 base.
(3) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample.
(4) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
(5) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
 

- Data not available
NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.
 

 

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, October 22, 2014