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News Release Information

22-236-DAL
Thursday, March 10, 2022

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (972) 850-4800

Consumer Price Index, Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land – February 2022

Area prices were up 2.1 percent over the past two months, up 7.8 percent from a year ago

Prices in the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), advanced 2.1 percent for the two months ending in February 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Michael Hirniak noted that this was the largest bi-monthly increase since April 2011. The food index rose 2.1 percent, while the energy index rose 2.7 percent in January and February. The all items less food and energy index rose 2.0 percent over the past two months. Among the indexes within the all items less food and energy category, prices were higher for shelter and recreation. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U rose 7.8 percent, the largest rise since August 1982. (See chart 1.) The index for all items less food and energy rose 6.5 percent over the year. Energy prices jumped 24.5 percent, while food prices increased 6.8 percent. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices increased 2.1 percent for the two months ending in February. Prices for food at home (groceries) advanced 3.1 percent, partly driven by a rise in cereals and bakery products. Prices for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) increased 1.1 percent for the same period.

During the 12 months ending in February 2022, food prices increased 6.8 percent, the largest rise since October 2008. Prices for food at home advanced 8.4 percent, partly due to a rise in meats, poultry, fish, and eggs. Prices for food away from home rose 5.3 percent since a year ago.

Energy

The energy index advanced 2.7 percent for the two months ending in February. The increase was almost entirely due to a 7.9-percent rise in the index for gasoline, but natural gas service also jumped 11.4 percent. Prices for electricity declined 5.0 percent for the same period.

From February 2021 to February 2022, energy prices jumped 24.5 percent, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (+44.8 percent), but all components contributed to the rise. Prices paid for natural gas service jumped 24.2 percent, while prices for electricity increased 3.5 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 2.0 percent in January and February, the largest rise since January and February 2005. Higher prices for shelter (+1.4 percent), recreation (+4.3 percent), and used cars and trucks (+2.4 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for education and communication (-0.7 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 6.5 percent, the largest 12-month rise since data for this series was published beginning in 1982. Components most contributing to the increase included new and used motor vehicles (+18.4 percent), shelter (+3.2 percent) and household furnishings and operations (+14.4 percent).

The April 2022 Consumer Price Index for the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land area is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, May 11, 2022.


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 Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, Texas, Core Based Statistical Area includes the counties of Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, and Waller.

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,
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, February 2022 (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Item and GroupIndexesPercent change from -
Dec.
2021
Jan.
2022
Feb.
2022
Feb.
2021
Dec.
2021
Jan.
2022

All items

245.509-250.5637.82.1-

All items (1967 = 100)

787.435-803.646   

Food and beverages

253.796-259.0636.42.1-

Food

254.948-260.3286.82.1-

Food at home

242.059249.133249.5188.43.10.2

Cereals and bakery products

268.674-301.02210.912.0-

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

279.564-285.90812.72.3-

Dairy and related products

202.257-190.8179.6-5.7-

Fruits and vegetables

292.947-303.1282.63.5-

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

295.534-303.7709.22.8-

Other food at home

209.984-215.9476.62.8-

Food away from home

263.656-266.6805.31.1-

Alcoholic beverages

226.606-230.0341.41.5-

Housing

240.485-242.6194.80.9-

Shelter

278.716281.303282.7143.21.40.5

Rent of primary residence

275.028279.905280.0793.71.80.1

Owners' equivalent rent of residences(2)

261.456264.233263.3032.80.7-0.4

Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(2)

261.456264.233263.3032.80.7-0.4

Fuels and utilities

212.970-208.6685.5-2.0-

Household energy

188.109170.521183.5556.9-2.47.6

Energy services

184.856167.335180.0836.4-2.67.6

Electricity

187.521166.597178.1783.5-5.07.0

Utility (piped) gas service

154.283154.769171.88924.211.411.1

Household furnishings and operations

157.893-158.67414.40.5-

Apparel

176.240-182.7929.53.7-

Transportation

207.769-219.20622.75.5-

Private transportation

212.969-223.32423.64.9-

New and used motor vehicles(3)

106.096-107.64218.41.5-

New vehicles(1)

185.424-186.5938.90.6-

Used cars and trucks(1)

336.726-344.91340.02.4-

Motor fuel

256.081255.382275.98644.77.88.1

Gasoline (all types)

255.971255.400276.11044.87.98.1

Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)

259.009258.430279.85645.98.08.3

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

277.514276.518296.40837.86.87.2

Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)

279.176278.630297.23836.86.56.7

Motor vehicle insurance(1)

665.617-----

Medical care

534.973-539.7370.80.9-

Recreation(3)

117.911-123.03710.04.3-

Education and communication(3)

124.344-123.4502.3-0.7-

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)

1,295.012-1,297.2262.10.2-

Other goods and services

433.287-440.3483.91.6-

Commodity and service group

Commodities

193.582-198.10912.72.3-

Commodities less food and beverages

163.819-167.90516.32.5-

Nondurables less food and beverages

207.518-215.83116.84.0-

Durables

118.596-119.80315.81.0-

Services

298.732-304.3614.81.9-

Special aggregate indexes

All items less shelter

233.233-238.72610.12.4-

All items less medical care

231.565-236.5708.42.2-

Commodities less food

166.109-170.19815.72.5-

Nondurables

230.737-237.55311.03.0-

Nondurables less food

208.244-216.24615.53.8-

Services less rent of shelter(2)

317.660-325.0786.52.3-

Services less medical care services

274.446-279.9025.32.0-

Energy

218.575208.189224.57124.52.77.9

All items less energy

251.788-256.8186.62.0-

All items less food and energy

251.120-256.0896.52.0-

(1) Indexes on an April 1978=100 base.
(2) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base.
(3) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
(4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample.
(5) Index on a December 1993=100.

- Data not available.

 

Last Modified Date: Thursday, March 10, 2022