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News Release Information

21-2129-SAN
Friday, December 10, 2021

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

Consumer Price Index, Honolulu Area — November 2021

Area prices were up 0.1 percent over the past two months, up 5.4 percent from a year ago

Prices in the Honolulu area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), inched up 0.1 percent for the two months ending in November 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that the November increase was influenced by higher prices for gasoline and food. (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 5.4 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) Food prices advanced 6.5 percent. Energy prices jumped 33.7 percent, largely the result of an increase in the price of gasoline. The index for all items less food and energy increased 3.4 percent over the year. (See table 1.)

Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in CPI-U, Urban Hawaii, January 2019-November 2021
Food

Food prices increased 1.0 percent for the two months ending in November. (See table 1.) Prices for food away from home increased 1.4 percent. Prices for food at home rose 0.7 percent, with four of the six grocery categories recording increases. Higher prices for fruits and vegetables (2.8 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for other food at home (-2.0 percent) for the same period.

Over the year, food prices advanced 6.5 percent. Prices for food away from home advanced 6.7 percent since a year ago. Prices for food at home rose 6.4 percent largely due to higher prices for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (16.2 percent).

Energy

The energy index rose 4.7 percent for the two months ending in November. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for gasoline (6.6 percent). Prices for electricity advanced 2.3 percent, but prices for natural gas service decreased 1.0 percent for the same period.

Energy prices jumped 33.7 percent over the year, largely due to higher prices for gasoline (44.8 percent). Prices paid for natural gas service jumped 31.8 percent, and prices for electricity increased 20.7 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy decreased 0.4 percent in the latest two-month period. Lower prices for apparel (-5.3 percent) and shelter (-1.2 percent) were partially offset by higher prices for used cars and trucks (5.1 percent), medical care (2.2 percent), motor vehicle insurance (2.2 percent), and household furnishings and operations (0.8 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy increased 3.4 percent. Components contributing to the increase included motor vehicle insurance (10.8 percent), new and used motor vehicles (10.0 percent), recreation (4.1 percent), and shelter (3.4 percent). Partly offsetting the increases was a price decrease in apparel (-4.1 percent).

Table A. Urban Hawaii CPI-U 2-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted
Month201920202021
2-month12-month2-month12-month2-month12-month

January

-0.21.90.51.70.31.4

March

0.51.80.61.80.91.8

May

0.72.10.21.32.13.8

July

-0.11.60.01.30.84.6

September

0.11.10.61.91.05.0

November

0.10.9-0.21.60.15.4

The January 2022 Consumer Price Index for the Honolulu area is scheduled to be released on February 10, 2022

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Impact on November 2021 Consumer Price Index Data

Data collection by personal visit for the Consumer Price Index (CPI) program has been suspended almost entirely since March 16, 2020. When possible, data normally collected by personal visit were collected either online or by phone. Additionally, data collection in November was affected by the temporary closing or limited operations of certain types of establishments. These factors resulted in an increase in the number of prices considered temporarily unavailable and imputed.

While the CPI program attempted to collect as much data as possible, many indexes are based on smaller amounts of collected prices than usual, and a small number of indexes that are normally published were not published this month. Additional information is available at https://www.bls.gov/covid19/effects-of-covid-19-pandemic-on-consumer-price-index.htm.


Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measures 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 Urban Hawaii area covered in this release consists of Honolulu in the State of Hawaii.

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

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

IndexesPercent change from-
Historical
data
Sep.
2021
Oct.
2021
Nov.
2021
Nov.
2020
Sep.
2021
Oct.
2021

Expenditure category

All items

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSA0
301.891-302.3325.40.1-

All items (1967=100)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FAA0
831.099-832.313---

Food and beverages

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAF
319.202-322.2666.41.0-

Food

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAF1
319.869-322.9696.51.0-

Food at home

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAF11
318.246320.327320.3186.40.70.0

Cereals and bakery products

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAF111
339.034-346.4756.22.2-

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAF112
328.397-331.57016.21.0-

Dairy and related products

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSEFJ
244.655-239.637-0.8-2.1-

Fruits and vegetables

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAF113
377.208-387.7770.12.8-

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAF114
421.182-434.93715.93.3-

Other food at home

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAF115
292.764-286.7751.2-2.0-

Food away from home

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSEFV
312.963-317.2306.71.4-

Alcoholic beverages

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAF116
306.740-309.1883.30.8-

Housing

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAH
328.813-325.9644.1-0.9-

Shelter

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAH1
360.169356.860355.7233.4-1.2-0.3

Rent of primary residence(2)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSEHA
349.501349.362349.9312.30.10.2

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSEHC
363.606363.674364.6442.80.30.3

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSEHC01
363.606363.674364.6442.80.30.3

Fuels and utilities

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAH2
388.002-393.23112.71.3-

Household energy

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAH21
307.326307.872314.36521.32.32.1

Energy services

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSEHF
301.617301.891308.17221.22.22.1

Electricity

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSEHF01
297.060297.973303.98220.72.32.0

Utility (piped) gas service

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSEHF02
342.356327.810339.04731.8-1.03.4

Household furnishings and operations

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAH3
151.521-152.7922.40.8-

Apparel

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAA
113.203-107.158-4.1-5.3-

Transportation

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAT
241.792-250.25116.03.5-

Private transportation

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAT1
250.513-259.37118.43.5-

New and used motor vehicles(3)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSETA
--119.71210.0--

New vehicles(1)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSETA01
--177.5161.9--

Used cars and trucks(1)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSETA02
322.535-339.03530.05.1-

Motor fuel

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSETB
318.899328.055340.08044.86.63.7

Gasoline (all types)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSETB01
327.359336.739349.09244.86.63.7

Gasoline, unleaded regular(4)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSS47014
338.754348.983361.95845.56.83.7

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSS47015
273.413279.823290.19136.46.13.7

Gasoline, unleaded premium(4)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSS47016
310.990318.235329.28443.05.93.5

Motor vehicle insurance(1)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSETE
468.689-479.16110.82.2-

Medical care

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAM
438.429-447.9942.32.2-

Recreation(3)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAR
143.941-143.5354.1-0.3-

Education and communication(3)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAE
151.835-151.3131.4-0.3-

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

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSEEB
1,871.840-1,877.8293.70.3-

Other goods and services

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAG
534.900-533.7575.3-0.2-

Commodity and service group

All items

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSA0
301.891-302.3325.40.1-

Commodities

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAC
225.732-228.8388.91.4-

Commodities less food & beverages

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSACL11
169.348-172.40511.61.8-

Nondurables less food & beverages

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSANL11
212.745-216.62714.21.8-

Durables

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAD
121.567-123.7318.41.8-

Services

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAS
368.470-366.6513.6-0.5-

Special aggregate indexes

All items less medical care

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSA0L5
294.464-294.4695.60.0-

All items less shelter

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSA0L2
276.495-279.5556.81.1-

Commodities less food

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSACL1
174.294-177.34511.11.8-

Nondurables

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSAN
268.237-271.6389.01.3-

Nondurables less food

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSANL1
218.603-222.38613.11.7-

Services less rent of shelter(2)

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSASL2RS
375.284-378.0144.00.7-

Services less medical care services

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSASL5
360.273-358.0663.8-0.6-

Energy

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSA0E
311.619316.884326.36833.74.73.0

All items less energy

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSA0LE
303.195-302.7673.9-0.1-

All items less food and energy

Go to web page with historical data for series CUURS49FSA0L1E
301.929-300.7953.4-0.4-

Footnotes
(1) Indexes on a December 1977=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) 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: Friday, December 10, 2021