The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Miami decreased 0.5 percent over the March-April pricing period, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that the all items less food and energy index declined 0.7 percent. Over the two month pricing period, the food index was down 0.2 percent, while the energy index was up 1.8 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 rose 2.8 percent. The index for all items less food and energy increased 2.4 percent and the energy index advanced 12.1 percent over the year. The food index inched up 0.1 percent since April 2016. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

Food

The food index edged down 0.2 percent during the March-April pricing period. Prices for food at home declined 1.0 percent, while prices for food away from home increased 1.1 percent over the two months.

Since April 2016, the food index inched up 0.1 percent as a 2.5 percent increase in the food away from home index was largely offset by a 1.5 percent decline in the food at home index.

Energy

The energy index increased 1.8 percent during the two month pricing period, led by a 3.5-percent increase in motor fuel prices. During this same period, prices for utility (piped) gas service rose 1.7 percent and prices for electricity inched up 0.1 percent.

Over the year, the energy index advanced 12.1 percent, reflecting price increases for motor fuel (14.7 percent), electricity (9.6 percent), and for utility (piped) gas service (5.5 percent).

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy declined 0.7 percent during the March-April pricing period. Price increases for apparel (10.3 percent) and recreation (1.8 percent), were partially offset by a price decrease for education and communication (-2.9 percent).

Since April 2016, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 2.4 percent, reflecting a 4.0 percent increase in the shelter index and a 10.5 percent increase in the medical care index.

Table A. Miami CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted

Month	2013		2014		2015		2016		2017
	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month
February	1.5	1.9	1.2	1.6	0.3	0.4	0.2	1.6	1.3	4.0
April	-0.2	0.9	0.7	2.5	0.8	0.5	0.7	1.4	-0.5	2.8
June	-0.1	1.6	-0.3	2.4	0.4	1.2	0.6	1.6
August	-0.2	0.6	-0.1	2.4	0.0	1.3	0.0	1.6
October	0.6	0.9	0.4	2.2	0.2	1.1	0.5	1.9
December	0.2	1.9	-0.6	1.4	-0.1	1.6	0.8	2.9

The Consumer Price Index for May 2017 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, June 14, 2017.

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 Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Fl. consolidated area covered in this release is comprised of Broward and Miami-Dade Counties in Florida.

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
Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	Feb. 2017	Mar. 2017	Apr. 2017	Apr. 2016	Feb. 2017	Mar. 2017
Expenditure category
All Items	256.890	-	255.708	2.8	-0.5	-
All items (November 1977=100)	414.070	-	412.166	-	-	-
Food and beverages	259.877	-	259.295	0.1	-0.2	-
Food	262.099	-	261.685	0.1	-0.2	-
Food at home	253.838	252.433	251.221	-1.5	-1.0	-0.5
Food away from home	278.124	-	281.096	2.5	1.1	-
Alcoholic beverages	230.131	-	227.160	0.0	-1.3	-
Housing	263.924	-	264.299	4.2	0.1	-
Shelter	301.118	302.199	301.230	4.0	0.0	-0.3
Rent of primary residence(1)	294.536	295.441	295.815	4.9	0.4	0.1
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(1)(2)	300.651	302.029	302.708	3.9	0.7	0.2
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(1)(2)	300.651	302.029	302.708	3.9	0.7	0.2
Fuels and utilities	175.967	-	176.240	7.9	0.2	-
Household energy	152.415	152.519	152.539	9.4	0.1	0.0
Energy services(1)	149.576	149.672	149.738	9.5	0.1	0.0
Electricity(1)	146.243	146.340	146.326	9.6	0.1	0.0
Utility (piped) gas service(1)	199.507	199.519	202.801	5.5	1.7	1.6
Household furnishings and operations	159.662	-	162.071	1.1	1.5	-
Apparel	135.250	-	149.182	3.6	10.3	-
Transportation	223.327	-	212.243	0.1	-5.0	-
Private transportation	227.008	-	214.358	-0.4	-5.6	-
Motor fuel	213.562	215.012	221.082	14.7	3.5	2.8
Gasoline (all types)	211.097	212.542	218.569	14.7	3.5	2.8
Unleaded regular(3)	207.652	209.062	215.310	15.1	3.7	3.0
Unleaded midgrade(3)(4)	211.170	213.257	217.435	13.6	3.0	2.0
Unleaded premium(3)	229.769	231.253	235.230	12.0	2.4	1.7
Medical Care	506.738	-	508.244	10.5	0.3	-
Recreation(5)	120.137	-	122.254	4.9	1.8	-
Education and communication(5)	125.021	-	121.414	-4.9	-2.9	-
Other goods and services	341.753	-	346.274	1.7	1.3	-
Commodity and service group
All Items	256.890	-	255.708	2.8	-0.5	-
Commodities	201.807	-	204.334	3.9	1.3	-
Commodities less food & beverages	166.777	-	170.898	7.1	2.5	-
Nondurables less food & beverages	198.307	-	205.417	10.0	3.6	-
Durables	133.343	-	133.522	1.2	0.1	-
Services	299.273	-	295.515	2.3	-1.3	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	246.250	-	244.982	2.3	-0.5	-
All items less shelter	233.595	-	231.717	2.0	-0.8	-
Commodities less food	169.258	-	173.146	6.7	2.3	-
Nondurables	231.268	-	234.720	4.4	1.5	-
Nondurables less food	200.338	-	206.872	9.3	3.3	-
Services less rent of shelter(2)	304.877	-	295.148	-0.2	-3.2	-
Services less medical care services	285.432	-	281.416	2.2	-1.4	-
Energy	180.074	180.757	183.376	12.1	1.8	1.4
All items less energy	265.566	-	263.839	2.1	-0.7	-
All items less food and energy	266.058	-	264.104	2.4	-0.7	-
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 November 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. Data not seasonally adjusted.