The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the South inched down 0.1 percent in December, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The energy index declined 1.2 percent over the month and the all items less food and energy index declined 0.1 percent. The food index inched up 0.1 percent in December. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

The all items CPI-U increased 1.8 percent since December 2016. The all items less food and energy index moved up 1.5 percent over the last 12 months, and the energy index advanced 5.6 percent. The food index rose 1.4 percent over the year. (See chart 1.)

Food

The food index inched up 0.1 percent in December, reflecting a 0.4-percent increase in the food away from home index. The food at home index was unchanged over the month.

The food index rose 1.4 percent since December 2016, led by a 2.1-percent increase in food away from home prices. Over the year, prices for food at home rose 0.9 percent.

Energy

The energy index declined 1.2 percent in December, fueled by a 2.8-percent decline in motor fuel prices. Prices for utility (piped) gas service increased 0.9 percent in December, while electricity prices were unchanged over the month.

From December 2016—December 2017, the energy index advanced 5.6 percent, reflecting a 7.8-percent increase for motor fuel prices. Prices for electricity and for utility (piped) gas service also increased over the year, up 3.2 and 6.1 percent, respectively.

All items less food and energy

The all items less food and energy index inched down 0.1 percent in December. Price declines for apparel (-3.8 percent) and recreation (-0.5 percent) were largely offset by price increases for shelter (0.2 percent) and medical care (0.2 percent).

Since December 2016, the all items less food and energy index advanced 1.5 percent, led by an increase in the shelter index (3.3 percent).

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

Month	2013		2014		2015		2016		2017
	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month
January	0.4	1.6	0.3	1.7	-0.7	-0.4	0.0	1.2	0.5	2.6
February	0.9	1.8	0.4	1.2	0.5	-0.3	0.1	0.7	0.2	2.8
March	0.3	1.5	0.6	1.5	0.6	-0.3	0.6	0.7	0.0	2.2
April	-0.2	0.9	0.5	2.3	0.3	-0.6	0.4	0.9	0.2	2.0
May	0.0	1.3	0.2	2.4	0.4	-0.4	0.4	0.9	0.0	1.7
June	0.4	1.9	0.2	2.3	0.5	-0.1	0.4	0.8	0.2	1.5
July	0.2	2.2	-0.1	2.0	-0.1	-0.1	-0.2	0.7	-0.2	1.6
August	0.1	1.7	-0.2	1.7	-0.2	-0.2	0.1	1.0	0.4	1.9
September	0.0	1.3	0.1	1.7	-0.2	-0.4	0.2	1.4	0.7	2.4
October	-0.2	1.3	-0.3	1.6	0.0	-0.1	0.1	1.5	-0.2	2.0
November	-0.3	1.5	-0.6	1.3	-0.2	0.3	-0.1	1.6	-0.1	2.1
December	0.1	1.8	-0.6	0.6	-0.4	0.5	0.1	2.0	-0.1	1.8

The Consumer Price Index for January 2018 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, February 14, 2018.

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 South region is comprised of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.

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
South (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017	Dec. 2016	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017
Expenditure category
All Items	239.067	238.861	238.512	1.8	-0.2	-0.1
All items (December 1977=100)	387.800	387.466	386.900	-	-	-
Food and beverages	249.112	248.635	248.924	1.4	-0.1	0.1
Food	250.357	249.842	250.183	1.4	-0.1	0.1
Food at home	238.588	237.402	237.328	0.9	-0.5	0.0
Food away from home	270.779	271.257	272.220	2.1	0.5	0.4
Alcoholic beverages	231.365	231.470	230.971	1.3	-0.2	-0.2
Housing	233.871	233.922	234.271	2.9	0.2	0.1
Shelter	268.632	269.154	269.585	3.3	0.4	0.2
Rent of primary residence(1)	279.360	280.416	281.130	3.8	0.6	0.3
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(1)(2)	270.587	271.409	272.057	3.2	0.5	0.2
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(1)(2)	270.578	271.399	272.048	3.2	0.5	0.2
Fuels and utilities	236.082	234.510	235.016	3.5	-0.5	0.2
Household energy	191.413	189.294	189.637	3.7	-0.9	0.2
Energy services(1)	191.612	189.437	189.726	3.6	-1.0	0.2
Electricity(1)	189.232	186.678	186.756	3.2	-1.3	0.0
Utility (piped) gas service(1)	191.747	192.311	193.989	6.1	1.2	0.9
Household furnishings and operations	120.359	119.831	119.787	-1.0	-0.5	0.0
Apparel	136.724	133.839	128.781	-3.2	-5.8	-3.8
Transportation	204.679	204.911	203.612	2.9	-0.5	-0.6
Private transportation	203.164	203.293	202.308	3.1	-0.4	-0.5
New and used motor vehicles(3)	100.355	100.289	100.897	-0.8	0.5	0.6
New vehicles	151.465	151.892	152.588	-0.7	0.7	0.5
New cars and trucks(3)(4)	103.117	103.408	103.882	-0.7	0.7	0.5
New cars(4)	150.012	150.642	151.448	-1.6	1.0	0.5
Used cars and trucks	137.058	136.154	137.368	-0.5	0.2	0.9
Motor fuel	212.172	212.195	206.326	7.8	-2.8	-2.8
Gasoline (all types)	211.074	211.068	205.114	7.7	-2.8	-2.8
Unleaded regular(4)	205.869	205.868	199.823	7.7	-2.9	-2.9
Unleaded midgrade(4)(5)	233.554	233.987	228.878	8.5	-2.0	-2.2
Unleaded premium(4)	232.595	232.394	227.681	8.1	-2.1	-2.0
Medical care	457.382	455.694	456.631	1.8	-0.2	0.2
Medical care commodities	366.203	366.296	369.725	1.6	1.0	0.9
Medical care services	488.130	485.746	485.668	1.9	-0.5	0.0
Professional services	360.876	358.429	358.408	-2.6	-0.7	0.0
Recreation(3)	117.386	117.348	116.768	0.4	-0.5	-0.5
Education and communication(3)	132.618	132.893	132.795	-2.4	0.1	-0.1
Other goods and services	422.274	422.145	422.957	1.0	0.2	0.2
Commodity and service group
All Items	239.067	238.861	238.512	1.8	-0.2	-0.1
Commodities	182.389	181.684	180.850	0.6	-0.8	-0.5
Commodities less food and beverages	150.781	150.004	148.744	0.1	-1.4	-0.8
Nondurables less food and beverages	198.663	197.260	194.085	1.3	-2.3	-1.6
Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel	237.140	236.501	234.263	2.7	-1.2	-0.9
Durables	106.776	106.502	106.710	-1.4	-0.1	0.2
Services	296.047	296.320	296.436	2.6	0.1	0.0
Rent of shelter(2)	275.760	276.291	276.796	3.3	0.4	0.2
Transportation services	348.684	350.021	347.940	3.9	-0.2	-0.6
Other services	337.680	338.771	338.649	-0.1	0.3	0.0
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	227.147	227.011	226.605	1.8	-0.2	-0.2
All items less food	237.093	236.934	236.480	1.9	-0.3	-0.2
All items less shelter	228.540	228.032	227.358	1.2	-0.5	-0.3
Commodities less food	153.264	152.505	151.259	0.2	-1.3	-0.8
Nondurables	222.552	221.593	220.076	1.4	-1.1	-0.7
Nondurables less food	200.304	198.981	195.950	1.3	-2.2	-1.5
Nondurables less food and apparel	235.535	234.960	232.872	2.6	-1.1	-0.9
Services less rent of shelter(2)	330.788	330.741	330.365	1.8	-0.1	-0.1
Services less medical care services	278.735	279.182	279.309	2.6	0.2	0.0
Energy	196.585	195.457	193.046	5.6	-1.8	-1.2
All items less energy	244.616	244.510	244.387	1.5	-0.1	-0.1
All items less food and energy	244.024	243.990	243.786	1.5	-0.1	-0.1
Commodities less food and energy commodities	146.407	145.529	144.896	-1.3	-1.0	-0.4
Energy commodities	215.847	215.880	210.116	7.9	-2.7	-2.7
Services less energy services	307.048	307.599	307.695	2.5	0.2	0.0
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) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (5) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
- Data not available. Regions defined as the four Census regions. South includes Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia. NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date. Data not seasonally adjusted.