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News Release Information

19-2153-SAN
Wednesday, December 11, 2019

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

Consumer Price Index, San Diego Area – November 2019

Area prices were up 0.2 percent over the past two months, up 2.6 percent from a year ago

Prices in the San Diego area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), crept up 0.2 percent for the two months ending in November 2019, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Richard Holden noted that the November increase was influenced by higher prices for gasoline and shelter. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U increased 2.6 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) The index for all items less food and energy rose 2.2 percent over the year. Energy prices rose 6.8 percent, largely the result of an increase in the price of gasoline. Food prices increased 2.8 percent. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices advanced 1.1 percent for the two months ending in November. (See table 1.) Prices for food away from home advanced 1.4 percent, and prices for food at home rose 0.9 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices increased 2.8 percent. Prices for food at home rose 3.3 percent since a year ago, and prices for food away from home rose 2.3 percent.

Energy

The energy index rose 1.0 percent for the two months ending in November. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for gasoline (6.3 percent). Prices for electricity decreased 8.3 percent, and prices for natural gas service decreased 6.2 percent for the same period.

Energy prices rose 6.8 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (7.8 percent). Prices paid for electricity increased 6.1 percent, and prices for natural gas service edged up 0.2 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy was unchanged in the latest two-month period. Higher prices for recreation (1.3 percent) helped counter lower prices for apparel (-5.6 percent) and alcoholic beverages (-2.7 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 2.2 percent. Components contributing to the increase included recreation (3.8 percent), medical care (3.7 percent), and shelter (3.2 percent). Partly offsetting the increases were price decreases in education and communication (-2.5 percent) and apparel (-0.7 percent).

The January 2020 Consumer Price Index for the San Diego area is scheduled to be released on February 13, 2020.

Consumer Price Index Geographic Revision for 2018

In January 2018, BLS introduced a new geographic area sample for the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This index changed to a bimonthly publication schedule beginning in January, 2018. The first indexes using the new structure were published in February 2018. Additional information on the geographic revision is available at: www.bls.gov/cpi/additional-resources/geographic-revision-2018.htm.

Historical data, including semiannual and annual averages, are available at: www.bls.gov/cpi/data.htm

 


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-Carlsbad, 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 and percent changes for selected periods

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

IndexesPercent change from-
Sep.
2019
Oct.
2019
Nov.
2019
Nov.
2018
Sep.
2019
Oct.
2019

Expenditure category

All items

301.033-301.5202.60.2-

All items (1967=100)

1,017.886-1,019.532---

Food and beverages

261.023-263.0742.40.8-

Food

258.680-261.6052.81.1-

Food at home

230.653229.764232.6413.30.91.3

Cereals and bakery products

260.394-264.7562.71.7-

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

237.007-240.8812.11.6-

Dairy and related products

190.050-193.3197.81.7-

Fruits and vegetables

269.633-268.4776.0-0.4-

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

246.405-261.2845.56.0-

Other food at home

215.755-212.4870.3-1.5-

Food away from home

295.494-299.7592.31.4-

Food away from home

295.494-299.7592.31.4-

Alcoholic beverages

275.751-268.306-2.2-2.7-

Housing

357.699-357.4653.2-0.1-

Shelter

406.683407.623408.6433.20.50.3

Rent of primary residence(2)

402.529404.812406.0493.20.90.3

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)

431.157433.322433.6413.80.60.1

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)

431.157433.322433.6413.80.60.1

Fuels and utilities

353.831-336.0574.0-5.0-

Household energy

323.472325.153298.6215.1-7.7-8.2

Energy services

319.788321.183294.3575.2-8.0-8.4

Electricity

324.183324.183297.3426.1-8.3-8.3

Utility (piped) gas service

205.204210.966192.5310.2-6.2-8.7

Household furnishings and operations

186.521-185.8923.0-0.3-

Apparel

171.134-161.566-0.7-5.6-

Transportation

234.106-235.7483.20.7-

Private transportation

226.943-231.8893.32.2-

New and used motor vehicles(3)

106.930-106.8561.1-0.1-

New vehicles(1)

229.008-226.6350.7-1.0-

Used cars and trucks(1)

231.004-228.974-1.0-0.9-

Motor fuel

299.371323.006318.0917.86.3-1.5

Gasoline (all types)

299.202323.220318.1757.86.3-1.6

Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)

310.336335.724330.5277.86.5-1.5

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

259.794275.704271.4756.24.5-1.5

Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)

303.710326.885321.5918.05.9-1.6

Motor vehicle insurance(1)

533.034-535.9940.70.6-

Medical care

494.789-496.2643.70.3-

Recreation(3)

156.400-158.4273.81.3-

Education and communication(3)

130.136-130.967-2.50.6-

Tuition, other school fees, and child care(1)

1,538.385-1,538.385-3.20.0-

Other goods and services

405.354-410.6880.51.3-

Commodity and service group

All items

301.033-301.5202.60.2-

Commodities

204.877-205.8312.00.5-

Commodities less food & beverages

175.019-175.4791.80.3-

Nondurables less food & beverages

212.219-213.6662.80.7-

Durables

136.273-135.7090.1-0.4-

Services

386.086-386.1312.90.0-

Special aggregate indexes

All items less medical care

291.897-292.3382.50.2-

All items less shelter

259.334-259.2452.20.0-

Commodities less food

179.550-179.7361.60.1-

Nondurables

238.012-239.7602.60.7-

Nondurables less food

218.363-219.2302.40.4-

Services less rent of shelter(2)

380.967-378.6812.5-0.6-

Services less medical care services

373.883-373.7232.80.0-

Energy

304.412320.010307.5096.81.0-3.9

All items less energy

303.403-303.7022.30.1-

All items less food and energy

313.020-312.8662.20.0-

Footnotes
(1) Indexes on a November 1977=100 base.
(2) Indexes on a November 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.

 

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, December 11, 2019