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News Release Information

21-1762-CHI
Wednesday, October 13, 2021

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

Consumer Price Index, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin — September 2021

Area prices were up 0.3 percent over the past month, up 4.5 percent from a year ago

Prices in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), increased 0.3 percent in September, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Jason Palmer noted that food prices increased 1.3 percent over the month, and energy costs declined 0.5 percent. The index for all items less food and energy was up 0.2 percent in September. Increases in the indexes for shelter, household furnishings and operations, and apparel contributed to the increase in the all items less food and energy category. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U rose 4.5 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) The index for all items less food and energy increased 2.3 percent over the year. Energy prices jumped 30.8 percent, largely the result of an increase in the price of gasoline. Food prices increased 6.1 percent. (See table 1.)

  Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in CPI-U, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI, September 2018-September 2021

Food

Food prices advanced 1.3 percent for the month of September. Prices for food at home (groceries) increased 2.1 percent, and prices for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) were up 0.4 percent for the same period. Within the food at home group, indexes were higher in September for other fresh fruits; bacon, breakfast sausage, and related products; and spices, seasonings, condiments, and sauces. In contrast, the indexes for other meats and pork chops were lower.

Over the year, food prices increased 6.1 percent. Prices for food at home advanced 5.5 percent since a year ago, and prices for food away from home rose 6.8 percent.

Energy

The energy index decreased 0.5 percent over the month. The decrease was mainly due to lower prices for electricity (-2.6 percent). Prices for utility (piped) gas service advanced 0.7 percent, and prices for gasoline increased 0.1 percent for the same period.

Energy prices increased 30.8 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (47.0 percent). Prices paid for utility (piped) gas service jumped 42.6 percent, and prices for electricity were up 1.3 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy was up 0.2 percent in September. Higher prices for shelter (0.5 percent), household furnishings and operations (2.8 percent), and apparel (1.9 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for recreation (-5.1 percent) and used cars and trucks (-3.8 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy increased 2.3 percent. Components contributing to the increase included shelter (3.3 percent) and new and used motor vehicles (9.8 percent).

Table A. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI, CPI-U 1-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted
Month 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month

January

0.7 1.8 0.8 1.8 0.6 0.8 0.9 2.6 0.7 0.7

February

0.1 2.2 0.0 1.6 0.6 1.4 0.0 2.0 0.6 1.2

March

-0.1 2.0 0.0 1.8 0.1 1.5 -0.7 1.1 0.6 2.6

April

0.4 1.7 0.7 2.1 -0.1 0.8 -0.9 0.3 1.0 4.6

May

0.2 1.8 0.4 2.3 0.8 1.2 1.0 0.4 1.0 4.7

June

0.0 1.3 -0.2 2.2 -0.4 1.0 0.3 1.1 0.4 4.7

July

0.0 2.2 -0.3 1.9 0.3 1.6 0.2 1.0 0.4 4.9

August

0.3 2.3 0.1 1.7 0.2 1.6 0.1 1.0 0.1 4.8

September

0.4 2.1 0.4 1.6 0.2 1.4 0.6 1.4 0.3 4.5

October

-0.4 1.6 0.0 2.0 0.3 1.8 -0.1 1.0

November

0.4 1.8 -0.6 1.0 -0.2 2.2 -0.4 0.8

December

-0.4 1.7 -0.3 1.1 -0.2 2.2 -0.2 0.9

The October 2021 Consumer Price Index for the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, November 10, 2021.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic Impact on September 2021 Consumer Price Index Data

Data collection by personal visit for the Consumer Price Index (CPI) program has been suspended since March 16, 2020. When possible, data normally collected by personal visit were collected either online or by phone. Additionally, data collection in September was affected by the temporary closing or limited operations of certain types of establishments. These factors resulted in an increase in the number of prices considered temporarily unavailable and imputed.

While the CPI program attempted to collect as much data as possible, many indexes are based on smaller amounts of collected prices than usual, and a small number of indexes that are normally published were not published this month. Additional information is available at www.bls.gov/covid19/effects-of-covid-19-pandemic-on-consumer-price-index.htm.   


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 93 percent of the total U.S. population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers approximately 29 percent of the total U.S. 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 75 urban areas across the country from about 6,000 housing units and approximately 22,000 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; for most of the CPI-U the reference base is 1982-84 equals 100. An increase of 7 percent from the reference base, for example, is shown as 107.000.  Alternatively, that relationship can also be expressed as the price of a base period market basket of goods and services rising from $100 to $107. For further details see the CPI home page on the Internet at www.bls.gov/cpi and the CPI section of the BLS Handbook of Methods 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI, Core Based Statistical Area covered in this release is comprised of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties in Illinois; Jasper, Lake, Newton, and Porter Counties in Indiana; and Kenosha County in Wisconsin.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments 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-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Item and Group

Indexes Percent change from-
Jul.
2021
Aug.
2021
Sep.
2021
Sep.
2020
Jul.
2021
Aug.
2021

Expenditure category

All items

255.929 256.078 256.881 4.5 0.4 0.3

All items (1967=100)

764.608 765.053 767.454 - - -

Food and beverages

274.345 276.951 280.544 5.8 2.3 1.3

Food

274.437 277.419 281.139 6.1 2.4 1.3

Food at home

252.314 254.308 259.773 5.5 3.0 2.1

Cereals and bakery products

284.106 278.433 284.875 2.2 0.3 2.3

Meats, poultry, fish and eggs

281.029 286.647 289.035 8.1 2.8 0.8

Dairy and related products

226.935 228.340 226.562 -0.5 -0.2 -0.8

Fruits and vegetables

311.374 316.065 327.230 10.6 5.1 3.5

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

212.208 212.448 222.590 5.0 4.9 4.8

Other food at home

201.129 203.039 207.527 4.1 3.2 2.2

Food away from home

299.383 303.692 304.862 6.8 1.8 0.4

Alcoholic beverages

271.657 269.388 271.316 2.2 -0.1 0.7

Housing

270.272 271.127 272.852 5.0 1.0 0.6

Shelter

339.328 340.516 342.328 3.3 0.9 0.5

Rent of primary residence(2)

358.024 359.380 362.153 3.1 1.2 0.8

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)(3)

348.254 348.476 350.722 2.8 0.7 0.6

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)(3)

348.254 348.476 350.722 2.8 0.7 0.6

Fuels and utilities

236.913 239.073 237.382 13.7 0.2 -0.7

Household energy

187.802 189.986 187.962 17.1 0.1 -1.1

Energy services(2)

191.661 193.908 191.802 17.1 0.1 -1.1

Electricity(2)

168.414 169.620 165.248 1.3 -1.9 -2.6

Utility (piped) gas service(2)

210.607 214.220 215.666 42.6 2.4 0.7

Household furnishings and operations

96.935 96.400 99.131 9.6 2.3 2.8

Apparel

83.308 84.164 85.786 -2.0 3.0 1.9

Transportation

207.066 205.010 204.876 15.1 -1.1 -0.1

Private transportation

208.500 208.377 207.862 16.5 -0.3 -0.2

New and used motor vehicles(4)

108.859 108.894 108.192 9.8 -0.6 -0.6

New vehicles(1)

181.514 183.566 184.682 7.8 1.7 0.6

Used cars and trucks(1)

386.794 381.320 366.769 24.2 -5.2 -3.8

Motor fuel

300.216 299.142 299.410 46.9 -0.3 0.1

Gasoline (all types)

297.569 296.467 296.726 47.0 -0.3 0.1

Gasoline, unleaded regular(5)

287.550 286.414 286.690 48.2 -0.3 0.1

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(5)(6)

324.246 323.652 323.909 41.3 -0.1 0.1

Gasoline, unleaded premium(5)

315.484 315.105 315.064 35.9 -0.1 0.0

Motor vehicle insurance(1)

523.915 523.915 521.978 2.3 -0.4 -0.4

Medical care

529.040 527.899 526.810 -2.2 -0.4 -0.2

Recreation(4)

117.210 115.074 109.241 -5.0 -6.8 -5.1

Education and communication(4)

141.562 141.425 141.882 -0.3 0.2 0.3

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)

1,231.457 1,230.836 1,232.924 1.3 0.1 0.2

Other goods and services

412.393 413.270 417.439 2.2 1.2 1.0

Commodity and service group

All items

255.929 256.078 256.881 4.5 0.4 0.3

Commodities

181.857 182.520 184.340 8.4 1.4 1.0

Commodities less food and beverages

136.246 136.162 137.218 10.4 0.7 0.8

Nondurables less food and beverages

180.934 179.901 182.771 10.4 1.0 1.6

Durables

94.488 94.996 94.826 10.5 0.4 -0.2

Services

325.646 325.220 324.862 2.2 -0.2 -0.1

Special aggregate indexes

All items less medical care

244.304 244.515 245.411 5.3 0.5 0.4

All items less shelter

227.652 227.457 227.926 5.1 0.1 0.2

Commodities less food

141.009 140.868 141.957 10.0 0.7 0.8

Nondurables

227.665 228.352 231.602 7.7 1.7 1.4

Nondurables less food

186.825 185.715 188.535 9.6 0.9 1.5

Services less rent of shelter(3)

327.544 325.425 322.517 1.0 -1.5 -0.9

Services less medical care services

309.827 309.442 309.123 2.9 -0.2 -0.1

Energy

231.596 232.465 231.369 30.8 -0.1 -0.5

All items less energy

260.619 260.707 261.683 2.9 0.4 0.4

All items less food and energy

259.018 258.583 259.066 2.3 0.0 0.2

Footnotes
(1) Index on a December 1977=100 base.
(2) This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means estimator.
(3) Index on a December 1982=100 base.
(4) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
(5) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample.
(6) Index on a December 1993=100 base.

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

 

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, October 13, 2021