Consumer Price Index, Cincinnati-Hamilton, Ohio-Ky.-Ind., CMSA – 2011 Annual Averages

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Cincinnati-Hamilton area rose 3.1 percent from 2010 to 2011, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Charlene Peiffer noted that the energy index rose 11.9 percent in 2011, primarily due to increases in gasoline prices. Food prices increased 2.9 percent. The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.9 percent. Within the all items less food and energy category, the indexes for shelter, medical care, and education and communication were higher, while the indexes for recreation and household furnishings and operations were lower.

Food

Average annual food prices rose 2.9 percent in 2011 after rising 1.1 percent in 2010. Between the two components of the food index, prices for food at home increased 4.9 percent while the food away from home index was unchanged.

Energy

The energy index advanced 11.9 percent in 2011 after rising 13.5 percent in 2010. Within the energy category, the index for gasoline increased 26.6 percent. The index for electricity fell 4.5 percent while utility (piped) gas service costs were 1.4 percent lower compared to their respective 2010 averages.

All items less food and energy

Over the year, the annual average index for all items less food and energy increased 1.9 percent. Among the index’s components, higher costs were recorded for shelter (1.9 percent), medical care (2.4 percent), and education and communication (2.2 percent). In contrast, recreation prices fell 1.3 percent while the index for household furnishings and operations was 0.9 percent lower.

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The first half 2012 Consumer Price Index for Cincinnati-Hamilton is scheduled to be released on August 15, 2012, 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 87 percent of the total population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers 32percent 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 4,000 housing units and approximately 25,000 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/homch17_a.htm.

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 Cincinnati-Hamilton, Ohio-Ky.-Ind. consolidated area covered in this release is comprised of Dearborn and Ohio Counties in Indiana; Boone, Campbell, Gallatin, Grant, Kenton, and Pendleton Counties in Kentucky; and Brown, Butler, Clermont, Hamilton and Warren Counties in Ohio.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral phone number: 1-800-877-8339.

For personal assistance or further information on Consumer Price Indexes, as well as other Bureau products, contact the Chicago Information Office at (312) 353-1880 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET.

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

Cincinnati-Hamilton, OH-KY-IN (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Annual average indexes		Percent change 2010 to 2011
	2010	2011
Expenditure category
All items	204.729	211.064	3.1
All items (1967=100)	633.477	653.078	-
Food and beverages	200.398	205.761	2.7
Food	196.666	202.453	2.9
Food at home	191.217	200.681	4.9
Food away from home	206.791	206.757	0.0
Alcoholic beverages	236.162	234.257	-0.8
Housing	191.103	193.427	1.2
Shelter	212.735	216.726	1.9
Rent of primary residence (1)	215.712	218.777	1.4
Owners' equiv. rent of residences (1) (2)	216.111	220.094	1.8
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence (1) (2)	216.111	220.094	1.8
Fuels and utilities	222.186	220.607	-0.7
Household energy	193.538	187.837	-2.9
Energy services (1)	200.816	193.037	-3.9
Electricity (1)	200.519	191.554	-4.5
Utility (piped) gas service (1)	190.983	188.324	-1.4
Household furnishings and operations	117.690	116.587	-0.9
Apparel	137.977	141.581	2.6
Transportation	183.949	203.442	10.6
Private transportation	182.936	202.233	10.5
Motor fuel	246.045	311.791	26.7
Gasoline (all types)	246.055	311.390	26.6
Gasoline, unleaded regular (3)	253.598	321.965	27.0
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (3) (4)	238.481	300.611	26.1
Gasoline, unleaded premium (3)	213.117	265.516	24.6
Medical care	387.952	397.243	2.4
Recreation (5)	120.502	118.984	-1.3
Education and communication (5)	125.019	127.708	2.2
Other goods and services	424.062	434.253	2.4
Commodity and service group
All items	204.729	211.064	3.1
Commodities	167.883	176.254	5.0
Commodities less food & beverages	150.018	159.486	6.3
Nondurables less food & beverages	185.300	203.951	10.1
Durables	117.460	117.970	0.4
Services	244.619	248.993	1.8
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	196.179	202.354	3.1
All items less shelter	203.547	210.871	3.6
Commodities less food	153.510	162.770	6.0
Nondurables	194.196	206.790	6.5
Nondurables less food	189.726	207.531	9.4
Services less rent of shelter (2)	288.222	293.402	1.8
Services less medical care services	231.356	235.368	1.7
Energy	217.568	243.374	11.9
All items less energy	205.823	210.058	2.1
All items less food and energy	208.758	212.718	1.9
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) Index is on a November 1982=100 base. (3) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (4) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base. (5) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
- Data not available.

Table 2. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes for semiannual averages and percent changes for selected periods

Cincinnati-Hamilton, OH-KY-IN (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Semiannual average indexes			Percent change to 2nd half 2011 from-
	2nd half 2010	1st half 2011	2nd half 2011	2nd half 2010	1st half 2011
Expenditure category
All items	205.209	209.366	212.761	3.7	1.6
All items (1967=100)	634.962	647.826	658.331	-	-
Food and beverages	200.365	204.300	207.222	3.4	1.4
Food	196.733	200.889	204.017	3.7	1.6
Food at home	191.471	197.886	203.476	6.3	2.8
Food away from home	207.117	206.495	207.020	0.0	0.3
Alcoholic beverages	234.569	234.580	233.935	-0.3	-0.3
Housing	191.725	191.235	195.620	2.0	2.3
Shelter	213.508	214.818	218.635	2.4	1.8
Rent of primary residence (1)	215.952	217.775	219.780	1.8	0.9
Owners' equiv. rent of residences (1) (2)	216.689	218.001	222.186	2.5	1.9
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence (1) (2)	216.689	218.001	222.186	2.5	1.9
Fuels and utilities	226.508	214.652	226.563	0.0	5.5
Household energy	196.681	181.983	193.691	-1.5	6.4
Energy services (1)	204.286	186.770	199.304	-2.4	6.7
Electricity (1)	204.979	184.254	198.853	-3.0	7.9
Utility (piped) gas service (1)	190.338	186.487	190.161	-0.1	2.0
Household furnishings and operations	114.660	115.276	117.898	2.8	2.3
Apparel	135.736	138.082	145.081	6.9	5.1
Transportation	184.567	202.840	204.044	10.6	0.6
Private transportation	183.437	201.742	202.723	10.5	0.5
Motor fuel	249.369	314.484	309.099	24.0	-1.7
Gasoline (all types)	249.351	314.494	308.287	23.6	-2.0
Gasoline, unleaded regular (3)	257.100	325.105	318.825	24.0	-1.9
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (3) (4)	241.432	303.573	297.649	23.3	-2.0
Gasoline, unleaded premium (3)	215.666	268.605	262.426	21.7	-2.3
Medical care	390.666	394.086	400.400	2.5	1.6
Recreation (5)	120.248	119.391	118.577	-1.4	-0.7
Education and communication (5)	125.898	126.886	128.530	2.1	1.3
Other goods and services	427.626	432.066	436.440	2.1	1.0
Commodity and service group
All items	205.209	209.366	212.761	3.7	1.6
Commodities	167.353	175.130	177.378	6.0	1.3
Commodities less food & beverages	149.288	158.532	160.439	7.5	1.2
Nondurables less food & beverages	184.821	202.747	205.156	11.0	1.2
Durables	116.469	117.252	118.687	1.9	1.2
Services	246.121	246.694	251.293	2.1	1.9
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	196.568	200.727	203.980	3.8	1.6
All items less shelter	203.869	209.187	212.555	4.3	1.6
Commodities less food	152.752	161.841	163.699	7.2	1.1
Nondurables	193.922	205.456	208.124	7.3	1.3
Nondurables less food	189.185	206.392	208.670	10.3	1.1
Services less rent of shelter (2)	290.793	290.300	296.504	2.0	2.1
Services less medical care services	232.705	233.163	237.573	2.1	1.9
Energy	220.805	241.265	245.482	11.2	1.7
All items less energy	206.043	208.371	211.746	2.8	1.6
All items less food and energy	209.008	210.997	214.439	2.6	1.6
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) Index is on a November 1982=100 base. (3) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (4) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base. (5) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
- Data not available.