The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Chicago-Gary-Kenosha area fell 0.8 percent in July, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Charlene Peiffer noted that energy prices declined 4.5 percent and food prices fell 0.3 percent in July. The all items less food and energy index decreased 0.6 percent over the month. Among the indexes within the all items less food and energy category, prices were lower for shelter, recreation, and apparel. (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 Chicago area all items CPI-U was down 0.1 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) The energy index fell 12.2 percent over the year as prices declined for gasoline, electricity, and utility (piped) gas service. The all items less food and energy index was 1.1 percent higher over the year. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices fell 0.3 percent in July following a 0.4-percent decrease in June. Between the two components within the food index, prices for food at home (groceries) decreased 0.6 percent, while prices for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) were up 0.1 percent over the month. Within the food at home group, prices were lower for nonfrozen noncarbonated juices and drinks; breakfast cereal; and milk. In contrast, the indexes for tomatoes, potatoes, and lettuce increased.

From July 2015 to July 2016, the food index was unchanged. Prices for food eaten away from home rose 3.7 percent over the year, while grocery food prices fell 2.4 percent.

Energy

The energy index was down 4.5 percent in July primarily due to gasoline prices falling 11.5 percent. Utility (piped) gas service costs increased 5.0 percent over the month and the electricity index rose 1.1 percent.

Over the year, the Chicago area energy index declined 12.2 percent. The major contributing factor in the energy index’s decline was a 20.6-percent decrease in gasoline prices from July 2015. The electricity index fell 4.4 percent and utility (piped) gas service costs edged down 0.1 percent during the same period.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy decreased 0.6 percent in July. Prices were lower for shelter (-0.5 percent), recreation (-2.3 percent), and apparel (-3.3 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy increased 1.1 percent. Increases in the indexes for shelter (2.6 percent) and medical care (2.1 percent) were major contributing factors. In contrast, prices were down for household furnishings and operations (-4.1 percent), recreation (-2.3 percent), and apparel (-3.7 percent).

Table A. Chicago CPI-U 1-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted

Month	2012		2013		2014		2015		2016
	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month
January	0.6	2.1	0.2	1.2	0.9	1.2	-0.2	0.4	0.8	0.9
February	0.0	1.6	1.1	2.3	0.5	0.7	0.0	-0.2	-0.2	0.7
March	1.2	2.1	-0.1	0.9	1.1	1.9	0.7	-0.6	0.1	0.2
April	0.0	1.7	0.0	0.9	0.5	2.4	0.1	-0.9	0.6	0.7
May	-0.1	1.0	0.5	1.5	-0.1	1.8	0.3	-0.5	0.0	0.3
June	-0.1	0.9	0.1	1.7	0.4	2.0	0.2	-0.7	0.5	0.6
July	-0.2	1.1	-0.2	1.7	-0.4	1.9	-0.1	-0.5	-0.8	-0.1
August	0.6	1.5	0.1	1.1	0.1	1.9	0.4	-0.1
September	0.3	1.6	-0.2	0.7	0.0	2.1	-0.3	-0.4
October	-0.2	1.7	-0.3	0.5	-0.4	2.0	-0.1	-0.2
November	-0.4	1.5	-0.3	0.6	-0.8	1.6	-0.4	0.2
December	-0.3	1.7	-0.3	0.5	-0.4	1.5	-0.6	0.0

The August 2016 Consumer Price Index for Chicago is scheduled to be released on Friday, September 16, 2016.

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 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 6,000 housing units and approximately 24,000 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/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 Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, Ill.-Ind.-Wis. consolidated area covered in this release is comprised of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties in Illinois; Lake and Porter Counties in Indiana; and Kenosha County in Wisconsin.

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
Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, IL-IN-WI (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	May 2016	Jun. 2016	Jul. 2016	Jul. 2015	May 2016	Jun. 2016
Expenditure category
All items	229.257	230.307	228.415	-0.1	-0.4	-0.8
All items (1967=100)	684.925	688.060	682.408	-	-	-
Food and beverages	242.985	242.182	241.241	0.0	-0.7	-0.4
Food	242.765	241.914	241.147	0.0	-0.7	-0.3
Food at home	235.636	233.889	232.479	-2.4	-1.3	-0.6
Food away from home	247.752	248.330	248.595	3.7	0.3	0.1
Alcoholic beverages	244.504	244.426	240.915	-0.7	-1.5	-1.4
Housing	234.952	236.478	236.119	1.7	0.5	-0.2
Shelter	294.568	297.282	295.812	2.6	0.4	-0.5
Rent of primary residence (1)	311.695	312.688	313.464	2.4	0.6	0.2
Owners' equiv. rent of residences (1) (2)	299.775	300.313	301.197	2.8	0.5	0.3
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence (1) (2)	299.775	300.313	301.197	2.8	0.5	0.3
Fuels and utilities	192.257	192.555	195.983	-0.2	1.9	1.8
Household energy	150.457	150.516	154.165	-3.2	2.5	2.4
Energy services (1)	153.423	153.429	157.234	-3.1	2.5	2.5
Electricity (1)	157.431	153.072	154.689	-4.4	-1.7	1.1
Utility (piped) gas service (1)	133.639	140.672	147.672	-0.1	10.5	5.0
Household furnishings and operations	93.253	92.198	92.718	-4.1	-0.6	0.6
Apparel	87.536	86.203	83.354	-3.7	-4.8	-3.3
Transportation	182.559	185.633	179.372	-5.6	-1.7	-3.4
Private transportation	178.485	182.195	176.753	-5.9	-1.0	-3.0
Motor fuel	218.064	237.082	209.896	-20.6	-3.7	-11.5
Gasoline (all types)	216.003	234.900	207.812	-20.6	-3.8	-11.5
Gasoline, unleaded regular (3)	207.394	226.215	198.982	-21.8	-4.1	-12.0
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (3) (4)	242.246	260.830	234.994	-17.1	-3.0	-9.9
Gasoline, unleaded premium (3)	238.978	255.671	233.594	-13.4	-2.3	-8.6
Medical care	474.541	473.136	473.725	2.1	-0.2	0.1
Recreation (5)	108.563	110.079	107.508	-2.3	-1.0	-2.3
Education and communication (5)	142.333	141.753	142.423	0.2	0.1	0.5
Other goods and services	382.602	385.358	383.769	0.5	0.3	-0.4
Commodity and service group
All items	229.257	230.307	228.415	-0.1	-0.4	-0.8
Commodities	166.469	166.941	164.020	-3.1	-1.5	-1.7
Commodities less food & beverages	127.599	128.560	124.986	-5.6	-2.0	-2.8
Nondurables less food & beverages	166.944	169.989	163.058	-6.7	-2.3	-4.1
Durables	90.553	89.952	89.035	-3.1	-1.7	-1.0
Services	288.716	290.325	289.480	1.7	0.3	-0.3
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	218.742	219.900	217.897	-0.3	-0.4	-0.9
All items less shelter	207.261	207.737	205.693	-1.4	-0.8	-1.0
Commodities less food	131.848	132.793	129.184	-5.4	-2.0	-2.7
Nondurables	205.469	206.680	202.582	-3.1	-1.4	-2.0
Nondurables less food	172.101	174.988	168.212	-6.3	-2.3	-3.9
Services less rent of shelter (2)	297.375	297.861	297.653	0.7	0.1	-0.1
Services less medical care services	274.655	276.461	275.548	1.6	0.3	-0.3
Energy	176.374	183.772	175.478	-12.2	-0.5	-4.5
All items less energy	236.139	236.610	235.294	0.9	-0.4	-0.6
All items less food and energy	235.767	236.480	235.060	1.1	-0.3	-0.6
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.