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News Release Information

16-1482-SAN
Friday, July 15, 2016

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (415) 625-2270

Consumer Price Index, San Diego - First Half 2016

Area prices were up 0.4 percent over the past six months, up 2.0 percent from a year ago

Prices in the San Diego Area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), advanced 0.4 percent in the first half of 2016, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Richard Holden noted that the six-month increase was influenced by higher prices for shelter. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, six-month-to-six-month changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U rose 2.0 percent.  (See chart 1 and table A.) Energy prices fell 9.6 percent, largely the result of a decrease in the price of gasoline. The index for all items less food and energy rose 3.0 percent over the year. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices rose 0.7 percent in the first half of 2016. (See table 1.) Prices for food away from home rose 1.9 percent, but prices for food at home decreased 0.3 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices increased 2.2 percent. Prices for food away from home advanced 4.3 percent since a year ago, and prices for food at home rose 0.3 percent.

Energy

The energy index decreased 10.4 percent since the second half of 2015. The increase was mainly due to lower prices for gasoline (-15.5 percent). Prices for natural gas service fell 4.4 percent, and prices for electricity decreased 1.5 percent for the same period.

Energy prices fell 9.6 percent over the year, largely due to lower prices for gasoline (-15.4 percent). Prices paid for natural gas service fell 2.7 percent, but prices for electricity increased 0.9 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.3 percent in the latest-six month period. Higher prices for shelter (1.8 percent), apparel (1.6 percent), and other goods and services (1.6 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for household furnishings and operations (-0.8 percent) and education and communication (-0.1 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 3.0 percent. Components contributing to the increase included shelter (4.1 percent), apparel (2.9 percent), and recreation (2.4 percent.)

Table A. San Diego CPI-U monthly and annual percent changes (not seasonally adjusted)
Month201120122013201420152016
Semi-annualAnnualSemi-annualAnnualSemi-annualAnnualSemi-annualAnnualSemi-annualAnnualSemi-annualAnnual

First Half

2.33.41.31.70.60.91.42.40.90.80.42.0

Second Half

0.42.70.31.51.11.7-0.11.31.62.4  

The second half of 2016 Consumer Price Index for the San Diego area is scheduled to be released mid-January 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/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 San Diego, CA metropolitan area covered in this release consists of San Diego County in the State of California.

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 for semiannual averages and percent changes for selected periods

San Diego, CA (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Item and Group

 
Semiannual average indexes
 
Percent change to
1st half 2016 from-
1st half
2015
2nd half
2015
1st half
2016
1st half
2015
2nd half
2015

Expenditure category

 
 

All items

267.346271.526272.6282.00.4

All items (1967=100)

903.977918.113921.839--

Food and beverages

245.892249.132250.8022.00.7

Food

242.713246.216247.9662.20.7

Food at home

223.746225.186224.4940.3-0.3

Food away from home

266.663272.984278.2054.31.9

Alcoholic beverages

270.694270.880271.5820.30.3

Housing

300.113306.480310.9723.61.5

Shelter

336.524344.181350.4464.11.8

Rent of primary residence

329.807337.405343.0204.01.7

Owners' equiv. rent of residences (1)

358.339365.724372.6744.01.9

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence (1)

358.339365.724372.6744.01.9

Fuels and utilities

276.688281.951284.0882.70.8

Household energy

244.848250.290244.8280.0-2.2

Energy services

239.701245.151240.0030.1-2.1

Electricity

231.328236.897233.3770.9-1.5

Utility (piped) gas service

190.601193.952185.479-2.7-4.4

Household furnishings and operations

183.531185.266183.7930.1-0.8

Apparel

142.571144.477146.7272.91.6

Transportation

213.587215.297205.418-3.8-4.6

Private transportation

204.296207.683196.071-4.0-5.6

Motor fuel

259.482259.681219.589-15.4-15.4

Gasoline (all types)

259.634259.987219.773-15.4-15.5

Gasoline, unleaded regular (2)

269.850269.791227.481-15.7-15.7

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (2) (3)

222.721224.045189.936-14.7-15.2

Gasoline, unleaded premium (2)

262.957264.272225.955-14.1-14.5

Medical care

-----

Recreation (4)

146.264149.623149.8352.40.1

Education and communication (4)

145.187145.705145.5290.2-0.1

Other goods and services

365.906370.311376.3812.91.6
 

Commodity and service group

 
 

All Items

267.346271.526272.6282.00.4

Commodities

196.178197.256193.789-1.2-1.8

Commodities less food & beverages

169.752169.738163.718-3.6-3.5

Nondurables less food & beverages

190.045191.030182.225-4.1-4.6

Durables

148.717147.191145.336-2.3-1.3

Services

330.201337.066342.1133.61.5
 

Special aggregate indexes

 
 

All items less medical care

259.151263.430264.1691.90.3

All items less shelter

240.755243.430242.2320.6-0.5

Commodities less food

174.229174.224168.454-3.3-3.3

Nondurables

218.911220.963216.911-0.9-1.8

Nondurables less food

197.145198.086189.833-3.7-4.2

Services less rent of shelter (1)

340.928347.016350.6332.81.0

Services less medical care services

318.641325.600330.4903.71.5

Energy

249.757251.966225.813-9.6-10.4

All items less energy

270.683275.057278.4062.91.2

All items less food and energy

277.064281.618285.2783.01.3

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

- Data not available.
 

 

Last Modified Date: Friday, July 15, 2016