The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the Denver area declined 1.0 percent over the two months ended in January 2019, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Stanley W. Suchman noted that the decline was led by lower prices for gasoline. Overall, energy costs were down 14.6 percent. Food prices increased 0.8 percent and the all items less food and energy index declined 0.3 percent. (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 CPI-U advanced 0.4 percent as lower prices for energy (-9.3 percent) and apparel (-18.7 percent) moderated the increase. Prices for food rose 1.0 percent over the year and the index for all items less food and energy was also up 1.0 percent. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices rose 0.8 percent during the December-January period reflecting a 1.3-percent increase in prices for food at home. Prices for food away from home were up 0.2 percent and also contributed to the advance.

Over the year, the food index rose 1.0 percent due to a 2.8-percent increase in prices for food away home. Costs for food at home declined 0.6 percent.

Energy

The energy index fell 14.6 percent over the two-month period, largely due to a 22.4-percent decline in prices for gasoline. Prices for electricity were down 5.1 percent, but utility (piped) gas service costs rose 1.0 percent.

Over the year, the energy index decreased 9.3 percent reflecting lower prices for all major components. Prices for gasoline were down 11.9 percent, electricity costs declined 6.8 percent and utility (piped) gas service prices were 5.3 percent lower.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy declined 0.3 percent during the December-January period. Apparel prices (-7.3 percent) were among those that contributed to the decline, while shelter (0.6 percent) was among the indexes that registered higher prices over the period.

From January 2018 to January 2019, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 1.0 percent. The broad-based increase was led by higher prices for shelter (1.1 percent). Higher costs for medical care (2.1 percent), other goods and services (3.5 percent) and education and communication (1.5 percent) were also among those that contributed to the gain. Apparel (-18.7 percent) and new vehicles (-1.7 percent) were among the indexes that registered lower prices and helped to moderate the increase in the all items less food and energy index.

CPI-W

The Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) for the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood metropolitan area for January 2019 was 251.357.  The CPI-W decreased 1.1 percent from November 2018 to January 2019 and increased 0.7 percent over the year.

The Consumer Price Index for February 2019 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, March 12, 2019, 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 93 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 75 urban areas across the country from about 5,000 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 (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 ww.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 Denver-Aurora-Lakewood metropolitan area is comprised of Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Clear Creek, Denver, Douglas, Elbert, Gilpin, Jefferson, and Park counties in Colorado.

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