BLS U S Bureau of Labor Statistics : Consumer Price Index, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin — December 2018

News Release Information

19-6-CHI
Friday, January 11, 2019

Local prices up 1.1 percent over the year

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area decreased 0.3 percent in December, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Charlene Peiffer noted that food prices rose 0.2 percent and the energy index decreased 3.6 percent in December. The all items less food and energy index declined 0.1 percent over the month. Within the all items less food and energy category, prices were lower for apparel and other goods and services over the month, whereas prices rose for recreation and household furnishings and operations. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the Chicago area all items CPI-U increased 1.1 percent. (See chart 1and table A.) Over the year, the energy index fell 6.6 percent. The decline in the energy index was primarily due to lower gasoline prices. The food index and the all items less food and energy index rose 1.8 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively, over the year. (See table 1.)

Food

Food prices rose 0.2 percent in December. Of the two components within the food index, prices for food at home (groceries) were unchanged, while prices for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) increased 0.3 percent. Within the food at home group, indexes were higher in December for tomatoes, chicken, and ham. Prices were lower for snacks; frozen fruits and vegetables; and other processed fruits and vegetables including dried.

From December 2017 to December 2018, the food index increased 1.8 percent. Over the year, grocery prices declined 0.3 percent, while costs for food away from home rose 4.4 percent.

Energy

The energy index decreased 3.6 percent in December. During the same period, gasoline prices declined 9.0 percent. In December, electricity costs were unchanged and utility (piped) gas service costs rose 5.7 percent.

Over the year, the Chicago area energy index fell 6.6 percent. From December 2017 to December 2018, gasoline prices and electricity prices fell 13.0 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively. Utility (piped) gas service costs increased 2.5 percent over the year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy declined 0.1 percent in December. Among the index's components, prices were lower for apparel (-2.5 percent) and other goods and services (-1.7 percent), but higher for recreation (1.1 percent) and household furnishings and operations (1.5 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 1.6 percent. Increases in the indexes for shelter (3.6 percent) and medical care (1.4 percent) over the year were contributing factors.

Month	2014		2015		2016		2017		2018
	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month	1-month	12-month
January	0.9	1.2	-0.2	0.4	0.8	0.9	0.7	1.8	0.8	1.8
February	0.5	0.7	0.0	-0.2	-0.2	0.7	0.1	2.2	0.0	1.6
March	1.1	1.9	0.7	-0.6	0.1	0.2	-0.1	2.0	0.0	1.8
April	0.5	2.4	0.1	-0.9	0.6	0.7	0.4	1.7	0.7	2.1
May	-0.1	1.8	0.3	-0.5	0.0	0.3	0.2	1.8	0.4	2.3
June	0.4	2.0	0.2	-0.7	0.5	0.7	0.0	1.3	-0.2	2.2
July	-0.4	1.9	-0.1	-0.5	-0.8	-0.1	0.0	2.2	-0.3	1.9
August	0.1	1.9	0.4	-0.1	0.2	-0.2	0.3	2.3	0.1	1.7
September	0.0	2.1	-0.3	-0.4	0.6	0.6	0.4	2.1	0.4	1.6
October	-0.4	2.0	-0.1	-0.2	0.1	0.8	-0.4	1.6	0.0	2.0
November	-0.8	1.6	-0.4	0.2	0.2	1.5	0.4	1.8	-0.6	1.0
December	-0.4	1.5	-0.6	0.0	-0.2	1.9	-0.4	1.7	-0.3	1.1

The January 2019 Consumer Price Index for Chicago is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, February 13, 2019.

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 93 percent of the total population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers approximately 29 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 75 urban areas across the country from about 5,000 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 (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/pdf/homch17.pdf.

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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, Ill.-Ind.-Wis., Core Based Statistical Area covered in this release is comprised of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties in Illinois; Jasper, Lake, Newton, and Porter Counties in Indiana; and Kenosha County in Wisconsin.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: [phone]; Federal Relay Service: [phone].

Item and Group	Indexes			Percent change from-
	Oct. 2018	Nov. 2018	Dec. 2018	Dec. 2017	Oct. 2018	Nov. 2018
Expenditure category
All items	238.892	237.511	236.796	1.1	-0.9	-0.3
All items (1967=100)	713.710	709.583	707.446	-	-	-
Food and beverages	250.316	249.430	249.765	1.9	-0.2	0.1
Food	249.421	248.560	248.944	1.8	-0.2	0.2
Food at home	235.493	233.710	233.684	-0.3	-0.8	0.0
Cereals and bakery products	264.072	262.931	259.640	2.2	-1.7	-1.3
Meats, poultry, fish and eggs	251.294	249.317	249.942	-1.3	-0.5	0.3
Dairy and related products	210.010	207.163	208.431	0.1	-0.8	0.6
Fruits and vegetables	312.676	311.407	311.582	-2.5	-0.3	0.1
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials	189.844	186.143	188.709	4.0	-0.6	1.4
Other food at home	189.086	188.214	187.363	-0.7	-0.9	-0.5
Food away from home	263.823	264.147	265.049	4.4	0.5	0.3
Alcoholic beverages	261.928	260.660	260.212	2.4	-0.7	-0.2
Housing	248.747	249.225	250.166	3.0	0.6	0.4
Shelter	314.802	315.856	316.087	3.6	0.4	0.1
Rent of primary residence	333.905	335.604	336.495	2.9	0.8	0.3
Owners' equiv. rent of residences	321.659	322.748	324.089	4.2	0.8	0.4
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence	321.659	322.748	324.089	4.2	0.8	0.4
Fuels and utilities	204.156	204.979	208.655	1.0	2.2	1.8
Household energy	158.829	159.619	163.350	0.4	2.8	2.3
Energy services	161.864	162.798	166.612	0.4	2.9	2.3
Electricity	157.797	157.904	157.902	-1.2	0.1	0.0
Utility (piped) gas service	154.388	156.437	165.432	2.5	7.2	5.7
Household furnishings and operations	90.038	88.904	90.262	0.6	0.2	1.5
Apparel	86.774	83.301	81.197	-4.4	-6.4	-2.5
Transportation	188.820	183.765	178.453	-2.2	-5.5	-2.9
Private transportation	185.449	179.788	174.985	-3.1	-5.6	-2.7
New and used motor vehicles	95.152	96.218	95.459	-1.1	0.3	-0.8
New vehicles	171.120	173.737	172.484	-1.6	0.8	-0.7
Used cars and trucks	260.902	263.433	263.530	0.8	1.0	0.0
Motor fuel	256.862	224.447	204.212	-12.9	-20.5	-9.0
Gasoline (all types)	254.156	221.888	201.810	-13.0	-20.6	-9.0
Gasoline, unleaded regular	244.932	213.248	193.675	-12.9	-20.9	-9.2
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade	280.546	248.018	227.201	-12.5	-19.0	-8.4
Gasoline, unleaded premium	276.642	248.023	228.621	-11.8	-17.4	-7.8
Motor vehicle insurance	555.038	555.038	554.435	3.9	-0.1	-0.1
Medical care	506.167	505.134	505.970	1.4	0.0	0.2
Recreation	110.695	110.265	111.485	-0.3	0.7	1.1
Education and communication	142.695	141.669	141.704	-1.5	-0.7	0.0
Tuition, other school fees, and childcare	1,173.204	1,174.119	1,175.348	-0.6	0.2	0.1
Other goods and services	396.898	399.515	392.895	0.4	-1.0	-1.7
Commodity and service group
All items	238.892	237.511	236.796	1.1	-0.9	-0.3
Commodities	168.361	165.228	163.869	-1.4	-2.7	-0.8
Commodities less food and beverages	127.340	123.704	121.885	-3.5	-4.3	-1.5
Nondurables less food and beverages	175.319	166.215	161.024	-4.9	-8.2	-3.1
Durables	84.247	84.664	85.311	-1.5	1.3	0.8
Services	305.912	306.273	306.200	2.4	0.1	0.0
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	227.421	226.023	225.239	1.0	-1.0	-0.3
All items less shelter	213.241	211.004	209.956	-0.2	-1.5	-0.5
Commodities less food	132.000	128.354	126.534	-3.3	-4.1	-1.4
Nondurables	213.537	207.908	205.078	-1.3	-4.0	-1.4
Nondurables less food	181.033	172.185	167.153	-4.5	-7.7	-2.9
Services less rent of shelter	312.213	311.860	311.455	1.1	-0.2	-0.1
Services less medical care services	291.363	291.748	291.620	2.6	0.1	0.0
Energy	197.680	184.213	177.589	-6.6	-10.2	-3.6
All items less energy	244.768	244.519	244.358	1.6	-0.2	-0.1
All items less food and energy	244.798	244.647	244.397	1.6	-0.2	-0.1
- Data not available. Note: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date. Data not seasonally adjusted.