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News Release Information

24-512-SAN
Tuesday, March 12, 2024

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

Consumer Price Index, West Region — February 2024

Area prices were up 0.4 percent over the past month, up 3.2 percent from a year ago

Prices in the West Region, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), advanced 0.4 percent in February, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) The February increase was influenced by higher prices for shelter and gasoline. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U advanced 3.2 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) Food prices advanced 2.3 percent. Energy prices advanced 0.6 percent, largely the result of an increase in the price of electricity. The index for all items less food and energy advanced 3.6 percent over the year. (See table 1.)

Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in CPI-U, West Region, February 2021-February 2024
Food

Food prices were unchanged for the month of February. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home rose 0.1 percent, led by higher prices for cereals and bakery products (1.0 percent). Prices for food away from home were unchanged for the same period.

Over the year, food prices advanced 2.3 percent. Prices for food at home advanced 1.1 percent since a year ago, with higher prices in five of the six grocery categories. Prices for food away from home rose 4.4 percent.

Energy

The energy index increased 1.0 percent over the month. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for gasoline (1.6 percent). Prices for natural gas service rose 0.8 percent, and prices for electricity increased 0.2 percent for the same period.

Energy prices advanced 0.6 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for electricity (11.5 percent). Prices paid for natural gas service declined 5.3 percent, and prices for gasoline fell 4.0 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 0.4 percent in February. Higher prices for shelter (0.4 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for other goods and services (-2.5 percent) and recreation (-0.4 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy advanced 3.6 percent. Components contributing to the increase included medical care (5.5 percent) and shelter (4.6 percent). Partly offsetting the increases were price decreases in apparel (-2.2 percent) and new and used motor vehicles (-0.7 percent).

Table A. West region CPI-U 1-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted
Month 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month

January

0.3 2.9 0.2 1.4 0.9 7.7 0.9 6.3 0.7 3.3

February

0.4 3.1 0.5 1.6 0.8 8.1 0.5 6.0 0.4 3.2

March

-0.2 2.5 0.7 2.4 1.3 8.7 0.5 5.1

April

-0.4 1.3 1.0 3.9 0.7 8.3 0.5 4.9

May

0.1 0.8 0.8 4.7 0.8 8.3 0.4 4.5

June

0.4 1.2 0.9 5.1 1.2 8.8 0.3 3.5

July

0.5 1.7 0.6 5.2 0.1 8.3 0.1 3.5

August

0.3 1.9 0.2 5.0 0.0 8.1 0.4 3.9

September

0.0 1.6 0.2 5.3 0.3 8.3 0.4 3.9

October

0.2 1.2 0.8 6.0 0.7 8.1 0.1 3.3

November

0.0 1.4 0.5 6.5 -0.4 7.1 -0.4 3.3

December

-0.1 1.5 0.4 7.1 -0.4 6.2 -0.1 3.6

The March 2024 Consumer Price Index for the West Region is scheduled to be released on April 10, 2024.


Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index for the West Region is published monthly. 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, 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 West Region covered in this release is comprised of the following thirteen states: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods

West (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Item and Group

Indexes Percent change from-
Historical
data
Dec.
2023
Jan.
2024
Feb.
2024
Feb.
2023
Dec.
2023
Jan.
2024

Expenditure category

All Items

325.932 328.053 329.339 3.2 1.0 0.4

All items (December 1977=100)

526.851 530.280 532.359 - - -

Food and beverages

336.099 338.646 338.829 2.3 0.8 0.1

Food

338.478 341.068 341.219 2.3 0.8 0.0

Food at home

316.944 319.595 319.779 1.1 0.9 0.1

Cereals and bakery products

332.779 331.333 334.583 1.0 0.5 1.0

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

344.486 343.304 344.564 1.0 0.0 0.4

Dairy and related products

283.943 283.177 282.035 -2.7 -0.7 -0.4

Fruits and vegetables

393.629 403.229 400.201 0.9 1.7 -0.8

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials

221.911 227.536 226.248 1.2 2.0 -0.6

Other food at home

274.641 277.074 278.131 2.6 1.3 0.4

Food away from home

368.744 371.193 371.290 4.4 0.7 0.0

Alcoholic beverages

299.663 301.567 302.220 2.7 0.9 0.2

Housing

365.434 368.627 370.012 4.2 1.3 0.4

Shelter

420.452 422.948 424.770 4.6 1.0 0.4

Rent of primary residence(1)

450.336 451.299 452.449 4.8 0.5 0.3

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(1)(2)

444.763 446.985 448.415 5.0 0.8 0.3

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(1)(2)

444.556 446.778 448.205 5.0 0.8 0.3

Fuels and utilities

410.166 424.202 426.412 6.7 4.0 0.5

Household energy

360.040 374.501 375.840 6.9 4.4 0.4

Energy services(1)

362.837 377.989 379.307 7.2 4.5 0.3

Electricity(1)

397.308 416.928 417.893 11.5 5.2 0.2

Utility (piped) gas service(1)

302.884 307.590 309.948 -5.3 2.3 0.8

Household furnishings and operations

156.869 158.462 158.131 -0.4 0.8 -0.2

Apparel

120.719 123.555 124.638 -2.2 3.2 0.9

Transportation

271.388 269.967 274.032 2.1 1.0 1.5

Private transportation

270.826 268.437 271.009 2.0 0.1 1.0

New and used motor vehicles(3)

123.366 122.166 123.013 -0.7 -0.3 0.7

New vehicles

175.712 176.123 176.172 -0.1 0.3 0.0

New cars and trucks(3)(4)

- - - - - -

New cars(4)

174.694 175.287 175.062 -0.6 0.2 -0.1

Used cars and trucks

179.115 172.443 172.957 -2.0 -3.4 0.3

Motor fuel

337.053 324.445 329.490 -4.2 -2.2 1.6

Gasoline (all types)

334.565 322.269 327.367 -4.0 -2.2 1.6

Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)

330.231 317.806 322.947 -4.3 -2.2 1.6

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

320.846 309.601 314.318 -3.4 -2.0 1.5

Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)

330.653 319.526 324.173 -3.0 -2.0 1.5

Medical Care

598.854 599.698 601.871 5.5 0.5 0.4

Medical care commodities

461.457 462.342 462.333 3.8 0.2 0.0

Medical care services

641.361 642.190 645.057 5.9 0.6 0.4

Professional services

420.718 420.967 420.783 6.1 0.0 0.0

Recreation(3)

130.609 132.189 131.600 1.7 0.8 -0.4

Education and communication(3)

142.559 143.688 144.544 0.6 1.4 0.6

Tuition, other school fees, and child care(6)

1,650.569 1,655.928 1,662.215 1.9 0.7 0.4

Other goods and services

547.520 553.901 540.202 4.7 -1.3 -2.5

Commodity and Service Group

All Items

325.932 328.053 329.339 3.2 1.0 0.4

Commodities

224.793 225.376 225.653 0.0 0.4 0.1

Commodities less food & beverages

172.490 172.341 172.637 -1.4 0.1 0.2

Nondurables less food & beverages

227.825 226.246 227.669 -1.2 -0.1 0.6

Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel

302.904 298.333 300.005 -0.9 -1.0 0.6

Durables

123.523 124.230 123.833 -1.5 0.3 -0.3

Services

419.994 423.617 425.891 5.1 1.4 0.5

Rent of shelter(2)

448.326 450.979 452.940 4.6 1.0 0.4

Transportation services

385.594 391.805 402.704 9.1 4.4 2.8

Other services

409.393 412.587 411.200 3.0 0.4 -0.3

Special aggregate indexes:

All items less medical care

313.376 315.543 316.788 3.0 1.1 0.4

All items less food

324.090 326.141 327.598 3.3 1.1 0.4

All items less shelter

288.635 290.616 291.686 2.4 1.1 0.4

Commodities less food

177.180 177.073 177.380 -1.2 0.1 0.2

Nondurables

281.772 282.155 282.997 0.7 0.4 0.3

Nondurables less food

233.298 231.891 233.284 -1.0 0.0 0.6

Nondurables less food and apparel

302.113 298.102 299.683 -0.6 -0.8 0.5

Services less rent of shelter(2)

431.036 436.415 439.388 5.9 1.9 0.7

Services less medical care services

404.452 408.246 410.475 5.0 1.5 0.5

Energy

353.908 352.784 356.324 0.6 0.7 1.0

All items less energy

326.774 329.111 330.269 3.4 1.1 0.4

All items less food and energy

325.647 327.948 329.273 3.6 1.1 0.4

Commodities less food and energy commodities

159.826 160.886 160.749 -0.6 0.6 -0.1

Energy commodities

343.570 330.784 335.880 -4.3 -2.2 1.5

Services less energy services

424.978 428.035 430.369 5.0 1.3 0.5

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) 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) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
(6) Indexes on a December 1977=100 base.

- Data not available
Regions defined as the four Census regions. West includes Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.
NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date. Data not seasonally adjusted.

 

Last Modified Date: Tuesday, March 12, 2024