The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell increased 1.2 percent from June to August, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that the index for all items less food and energy rose 1.1 percent over the bi-monthly period. The energy index increased 2.7 percent since June, while the food index rose 0.6 percent. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

The all items CPI-U rose 0.7 percent for the 12 months ending in August. The index for all items less food and energy rose 2.1 percent over the year, while the food index advanced 4.5 percent. The energy index fell 16.5 percent over the past 12 months. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

Food

The food index rose 0.6 percent from June to August, reflecting a 2.0-percent increase in the food away from home index. The food at home index declined 0.7 percent over the bi-monthly period.

The food index advanced 4.5 percent for the 12 months ending in August, reflecting increases in the food at home (6.4 percent) and food away from home (2.4 percent) indexes.

Energy

The energy index increased 2.7 percent from June to August, reflecting a 7.0-percent increase in the gasoline index. The electricity index was unchanged over the bi-monthly period.

The energy index fell 16.5 percent for the 12 months ending in August, led by a 22.6-percent drop in the gasoline index. The electricity index fell 14.6 percent over the past 12 months.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.1 percent from June to August. Among the indexes to increase over the bi-monthly period include used cars and trucks (9.1 percent), apparel (6.1 percent), and education and communication (2.7 percent).  

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 2.1 percent for the 12 months ending in August. Several indexes contributed to the increase, most notably shelter (2.2 percent) and medical care (5.8 percent). Apparel (-7.6 percent) was among the indexes to decline over the past year.  

Table A. Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA, CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted

Month	2016		2017		2018		2019		2020
	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month	2-month	12-month
February	0.3	1.6	1.2	3.5	1.2	3.3	1.2	1.3	0.8	2.9
April	1.0	1.9	0.6	3.2	0.2	2.8	1.4	2.5	-1.8	-0.3
June	1.3	0.7	1.3	3.2	1.2	2.8	-0.1	1.1	1.1	0.9
August	0.5	1.2	0.8	3.5	0.3	2.2	1.3	2.2	1.2	0.7
October	-0.1	2.4	-0.3	3.2	-1.0	1.6	-0.2	3.0
December	-0.4	2.6	-0.4	3.2	-0.6	1.4	-0.3	3.3

The Consumer Price Index for September 2020 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, October 13, 2020.

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 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 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 Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA, Core Based Statistical Area covered in this release is comprised of Barrow, Bartow, Butts, Carroll, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, Dawson, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Haralson, Heard, Henry, Jasper, Lamar, Meriwether, Morgan, Newton, Paulding, Pickens, Pike, Rockdale, Spalding, and Walton Counties in Georgia.

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
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	Jun. 2020	Jul. 2020	Aug. 2020	Aug. 2019	Jun. 2020	Jul. 2020
Expenditure category
All Items	245.184	-	248.070	0.7	1.2	-
All items (1967=100)	739.399	-	748.103	-	-	-
Food and beverages	265.555	-	266.954	3.3	0.5	-
Food	279.267	-	280.920	4.5	0.6	-
Food at home	262.526	262.679	260.768	6.4	-0.7	-0.7
Cereals and bakery products	224.518	-	223.741	0.8	-0.3	-
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs	306.715	-	297.734	7.4	-2.9	-
Dairy and related products	238.187	-	249.561	8.3	4.8	-
Fruits and vegetables	312.279	-	300.390	3.4	-3.8	-
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)	268.272	-	262.762	5.1	-2.1	-
Other food at home	220.138	-	225.210	10.3	2.3	-
Food away from home	308.035	-	314.045	2.4	2.0	-
Alcoholic beverages	145.219	-	144.509	-12.2	-0.5	-
Housing	259.050	-	258.804	0.9	-0.1	-
Shelter	288.729	287.709	287.990	2.2	-0.3	0.1
Rent of primary residence	299.069	299.068	300.301	2.8	0.4	0.4
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)	281.515	281.023	281.970	2.8	0.2	0.3
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)	281.515	281.023	281.970	2.8	0.2	0.3
Fuels and utilities	299.156	-	298.353	-9.0	-0.3	-
Household energy	256.175	256.819	254.843	-11.0	-0.5	-0.8
Energy Services	254.701	255.321	253.357	-11.1	-0.5	-0.8
Electricity	219.919	219.919	219.919	-14.6	0.0	0.0
Utility (piped) gas service	-	-	-	-	-	-
Household furnishings and operations	127.528	-	129.059	2.7	1.2	-
Apparel	127.348	-	135.161	-7.6	6.1	-
Transportation	193.299	-	199.954	-3.1	3.4	-
Private transportation	194.594	-	201.981	-2.3	3.8	-
New and used motor vehicles(3)	101.679	-	106.158	4.2	4.4	-
New vehicles(1)	212.983	-	214.883	4.2	0.9	-
Used cars and trucks(1)	208.616	-	227.503	4.2	9.1	-
Motor fuel	162.398	178.253	173.551	-22.6	6.9	-2.6
Gasoline (all types)	161.035	176.945	172.239	-22.6	7.0	-2.7
Unleaded regular(4)	156.205	172.193	167.190	-23.1	7.0	-2.9
Unleaded midgrade(4)(5)	211.639	228.556	225.905	-19.3	6.7	-1.2
Unleaded premium(4)	187.494	201.124	199.423	-18.6	6.4	-0.8
Motor vehicle insurance(1)	1,263.864	-	1,263.864	7.4	0.0	-
Medical Care	488.577	-	498.237	5.8	2.0	-
Recreation(3)	86.944	-	87.024	2.4	0.1	-
Education and communication(3)	134.961	-	138.636	1.5	2.7	-
Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)	1,461.227	-	1,514.996	3.6	3.7	-
Other goods and services	395.373	-	401.856	3.1	1.6	-
Commodity and service group
All Items	245.184	-	248.070	0.7	1.2	-
Commodities	174.606	-	179.073	-0.7	2.6	-
Commodities less food & beverages	135.935	-	141.217	-2.9	3.9	-
Nondurables less food & beverages	166.708	-	173.040	-8.0	3.8	-
Durables	104.508	-	108.667	3.3	4.0	-
Services	312.083	-	313.245	1.5	0.4	-
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	232.459	-	235.016	0.3	1.1	-
All items less shelter	231.037	-	235.417	-0.1	1.9	-
Commodities less food	135.901	-	140.956	-3.3	3.7	-
Nondurables	209.933	-	214.077	-2.2	2.0	-
Nondurables less food	164.009	-	169.741	-8.4	3.5	-
Services less rent of shelter(2)	353.014	-	356.766	0.7	1.1	-
Services less medical care services	294.378	-	294.701	1.2	0.1	-
Energy	187.940	196.150	192.972	-16.5	2.7	-1.6
All items less energy	250.897	-	253.566	2.4	1.1	-
All items less food and energy	246.884	-	249.711	2.1	1.1	-
Footnotes (1) Index is on a December 1977=100 base. (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. NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date. Data not seasonally adjusted.