Prices in the New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), ticked down 0.1 percent, after edging up 0.2 percent in June, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Chief Regional Economist Martin Kohli attributed the downturn primarily to a decline in energy prices. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

Over the year, the CPI-U was down 0.1 percent. (See table A.) Since February, the 12-month percent change has remained relatively flat, within a range of -0.1 to 0.1 percent. (See chart 1.) The index for all items less food and energy increased 1.4 percent. (See table 1.)

Food

The food index decreased 0.2 percent in July, following a 0.1-percent increase in June. Lower prices for fresh fish and seafood and lettuce contributed to a 0.5-percent decline in prices for food at home. In contrast, prices for food away from home rose 0.2 percent.

Over the year, the food index increased 1.0 percent. At-home food prices inched up 0.1 percent, while away-from-home food prices rose 2.1 percent.

Energy

After rising in May and June, the energy index retreated 1.6 percent. Household energy prices dropped 2.4 percent, following a 3.9-percent jump in June. A reduction in electricity charges (-2.3 percent), coupled with lower prices for natural gas (-2.8 percent) and for fuel oil, led to the downturn in household energy. Gasoline prices also declined (-0.5 percent), following four months of increases.

For the year ended July 2015, the energy index fell 17.0 percent; gasoline prices decreased 25.3 percent, and household energy prices declined 9.7 percent. Within household energy, natural gas prices were down 14.6 percent, and electricity prices were down 3.2 percent.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy was unchanged in July, after ticking down 0.1 percent in June. Shelter prices advanced 0.4 percent, primarily reflecting higher prices for out-of-town lodging, often up at this time of year, and for residential rent. Medical care prices also increased (0.2 percent). Offsetting these increases were price reductions in airline fares, household furnishings and operations, and apparel.

From July 2014 to July 2015, the index for all items less food and energy increased 1.4 percent. A 2.5-percent advance in shelter prices was due in part to a 2.9-percent rise in residential rent. Apparel prices increased 1.6 percent, and medical care prices rose 1.2 percent.

Table A. New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island CPI-U 1-month and 12-month percent changes (not seasonally adjusted)

Month	2010		2011		2012		2013		2014		2015
	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month
January	0.2	2.4	0.3	1.5	0.4	2.8	0.5	2.2	0.9	1.9	0.1	-0.5
February	0.0	1.8	0.5	2.1	0.4	2.6	0.6	2.4	-0.2	1.1	0.3	0.1
March	0.5	2.1	0.7	2.3	0.6	2.6	0.1	1.9	0.4	1.3	0.2	-0.1
April	0.2	2.1	0.4	2.5	0.2	2.4	-0.2	1.4	0.0	1.6	0.1	0.0
May	0.2	2.2	0.6	2.9	0.1	1.8	0.1	1.4	0.5	1.9	0.4	-0.1
June	-0.1	1.5	0.2	3.2	-0.1	1.6	0.3	1.8	0.0	1.7	0.2	0.1
July	0.1	1.5	0.3	3.3	-0.2	1.1	0.2	2.1	0.1	1.6	-0.1	-0.1
August	0.2	1.4	0.4	3.5	0.6	1.4	0.1	1.7	-0.2	1.3
September	0.0	1.2	0.2	3.8	0.4	1.6	0.3	1.6	0.0	1.0
October	0.2	1.5	-0.2	3.3	-0.1	1.7	-0.6	1.1	-0.2	1.3
November	0.0	1.3	-0.3	3.0	0.0	2.0	0.1	1.2	-0.4	0.8
December	0.0	1.4	-0.4	2.7	-0.3	2.1	0.0	1.5	-0.5	0.3

CPI-W

In July, the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) was 256.054, down 0.1 percent over the month. The CPI-W decreased 0.5 percent over the year.

The August 2015 Consumer Price Index for New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island is scheduled to be released Wednesday, September 16, 2015, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).

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 approximately 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 New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, N.Y.-N.J.-Conn.-Pa. consolidated area covered in this release is comprised of Bronx, Dutchess, Kings, Nassau, New York, Orange, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk, and Westchester Counties in New York State; Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union, and Warren Counties in New Jersey; Fairfield County and parts of Litchfield, Middlesex, and New Haven Counties in Connecticut; and Pike County in Pennsylvania.

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