Consumer Price Index, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.-Wis., CMSA – 2011 Annual Averages

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area rose 3.6 percent from 2010 to 2011, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Charlene Peiffer noted that the energy index rose 17.1 percent in 2011, primarily due to increases in gasoline prices. Food prices were up 4.9 percent. The index for all items less food and energy increased 2.0 percent. Within the all items less food and energy category, the indexes for shelter and apparel were higher, while the index for household furnishings and operations was lower.

Food

Average annual food prices rose 4.9 percent in 2011 after rising 1.0 percent in 2010. Between the two components of the food index, prices for food at home increased 6.6 percent and the food away from home index rose 2.4 percent.

Energy

The energy index advanced 17.1 percent in 2011 after rising 12.7 percent in 2010. Within the energy category, the index for gasoline increased 27.1 percent. The indexes for utility (piped) gas service (0.2 percent) and electricity (5.8 percent) were also higher compared to their 2010 averages.

All items less food and energy

Over the year, the annual average index for all items less food and energy increased 2.0 percent. Among the index’s components, higher costs were recorded for shelter (0.6 percent) and apparel (5.4 percent). In contrast, prices for household furnishings and operations fell 0.8 percent.

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The first half 2012 Consumer Price Index for Minneapolis-St. Paul is scheduled to be released on August 15, 2012, at 7:30 a.m. (CT).

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 Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.-Wis. metropolitan are covered in this release is comprised of Anoka, Carver, Chisago, Dakota, Hennepin, Isanti, Ramsey, Scott, Sherburne, Washington, and Wright Counties and Pierce and St. Croix Counties in Wisconsin.

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 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. CT.

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

Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN-WI (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group	Annual average indexes		Percent change 2010 to 2011
	2010	2011
Expenditure category
All items	211.728	219.339	3.6
All items (1967=100)	665.363	689.278	-
Food and beverages	241.548	256.827	6.3
Food	235.427	246.988	4.9
Food at home	226.098	241.132	6.6
Food away from home	249.400	255.299	2.4
Alcoholic beverages	296.173	347.555	17.3
Housing	191.818	193.520	0.9
Shelter	218.126	219.541	0.6
Rent of primary residence (1)	213.842	216.412	1.2
Owners' equiv. rent of residences (1) (2)	229.262	230.038	0.3
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence (1) (2)	229.262	230.038	0.3
Fuels and utilities	180.445	187.336	3.8
Household energy	169.992	177.328	4.3
Energy services (1)	172.358	178.745	3.7
Electricity (1)	207.778	219.810	5.8
Utility (piped) gas service (1)	145.950	146.276	0.2
Household furnishings and operations	126.258	125.208	-0.8
Apparel	125.334	132.127	5.4
Transportation	192.353	212.110	10.3
Private transportation	178.576	197.302	10.5
Motor fuel	226.038	287.504	27.2
Gasoline (all types)	228.529	290.363	27.1
Gasoline, unleaded regular (3)	232.783	296.373	27.3
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (3) (4)	228.272	288.826	26.5
Gasoline, unleaded premium (3)	262.514	330.029	25.7
Medical care	417.358	425.780	2.0
Recreation (5)	116.269	119.712	3.0
Education and communication (5)	132.168	133.338	0.9
Other goods and services	312.959	311.678	-0.4
Commodity and service group
All Items	211.728	219.339	3.6
Commodities	178.286	189.411	6.2
Commodities less food & beverages	147.654	156.790	6.2
Nondurables less food & beverages	188.619	206.889	9.7
Durables	110.577	112.173	1.4
Services	241.551	245.719	1.7
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	202.460	210.026	3.7
All items less shelter	210.039	220.384	4.9
Commodities less food	153.534	164.118	6.9
Nondurables	214.835	231.985	8.0
Nondurables less food	196.568	217.184	10.5
Services less rent of shelter (2)	280.556	288.606	2.9
Services less medical care services	226.822	230.376	1.6
Energy	201.470	235.950	17.1
All items less energy	215.969	221.272	2.5
All items less food and energy	213.146	217.473	2.0
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 December 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

Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN-WI (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	212.492	217.374	221.304	4.1	1.8
All items (1967=100)	667.761	683.103	695.453	-	-
Food and beverages	243.385	252.805	260.849	7.2	3.2
Food	237.314	244.372	249.605	5.2	2.1
Food at home	228.708	237.656	244.608	7.0	2.9
Food away from home	249.990	253.552	257.047	2.8	1.4
Alcoholic beverages	297.498	329.688	365.423	22.8	10.8
Housing	191.932	192.915	194.125	1.1	0.6
Shelter	218.054	218.574	220.509	1.1	0.9
Rent of primary residence (1)	213.850	214.963	217.860	1.9	1.3
Owners' equiv. rent of residences (1) (2)	228.778	229.190	230.887	0.9	0.7
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence (1) (2)	228.778	229.190	230.887	0.9	0.7
Fuels and utilities	181.216	187.017	187.654	3.6	0.3
Household energy	171.617	177.139	177.518	3.4	0.2
Energy services (1)	174.455	178.573	178.917	2.6	0.2
Electricity (1)	212.704	217.034	222.586	4.6	2.6
Utility (piped) gas service (1)	144.911	149.145	143.407	-1.0	-3.8
Household furnishings and operations	126.247	125.349	125.068	-0.9	-0.2
Apparel	128.895	126.141	138.112	7.2	9.5
Transportation	193.361	210.528	213.691	10.5	1.5
Private transportation	179.609	196.165	198.438	10.5	1.2
Motor fuel	229.247	289.360	285.648	24.6	-1.3
Gasoline (all types)	231.712	292.655	288.071	24.3	-1.6
Gasoline, unleaded regular (3)	236.066	298.792	293.954	24.5	-1.6
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (3) (4)	231.288	291.018	286.635	23.9	-1.5
Gasoline, unleaded premium (3)	266.061	332.234	327.825	23.2	-1.3
Medical care	418.536	-	429.631	2.7	-
Recreation (5)	116.110	118.412	121.012	4.2	2.2
Education and communication (5)	132.203	132.369	134.307	1.6	1.5
Other goods and services	314.481	310.895	312.461	-0.6	0.5
Commodity and service group
All Items	212.492	217.374	221.304	4.1	1.8
Commodities	179.549	187.065	191.757	6.8	2.5
Commodities less food & beverages	148.654	155.155	158.425	6.6	2.1
Nondurables less food & beverages	190.528	204.125	209.654	10.0	2.7
Durables	110.823	111.479	112.866	1.8	1.2
Services	241.829	244.137	247.300	2.3	1.3
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care	203.221	208.189	211.863	4.3	1.8
All items less shelter	211.130	217.912	222.855	5.6	2.3
Commodities less food	154.551	161.943	166.294	7.6	2.7
Nondurables	216.735	228.618	235.352	8.6	2.9
Nondurables less food	198.440	213.371	220.998	11.4	3.6
Services less rent of shelter (2)	281.280	286.006	291.206	3.5	1.8
Services less medical care services	227.046	229.043	231.709	2.1	1.2
Energy	203.918	236.776	235.123	15.3	-0.7
All items less energy	216.689	219.037	223.508	3.1	2.0
All items less food and energy	213.683	215.295	219.651	2.8	2.0
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 December 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.