The Twelve Days of Christmas: what are the lyrics to the... https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/occasions/chr...
Which are ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’ and what are the lyrics to the song?
Sian Moore
2 December 2020, 17:05 | Updated: 3 December 2020, 11:23
It comes up every Christmas, and every year you forget the words (bar ‘Five Gold Rings’, of course). Here’s a handy guide to ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’, including its lyrics and meaning.
‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’ is a rootin’-tootin’, singalong Christmas carol that runs through the twelve days that make up the Christmas season – beginning on Christmas Day and ending on 6 January, the day before Epiphany.
Each day represents a new gift, starting with ‘a partridge in a pear tree’ and ending with ‘twelve drummers drumming’.
It’s a traditional English tune dating back to the 1700s, which some historians actually believe to have French origins.
The version we know best came from Frederic Austin, an English composer who set the lyrics and added some flourishes – including the drawn out “five go-old rings” – in 1909.
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The carol is a cumulative song, which means that each verse is built on top of the previous verses.
Read more: The 30 greatest Christmas carols of all time >
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A partridge in a pear tree. Picture: Getty What are the lyrics to ‘The 12 Days of Christmas’?
On the first day of Christmas My true love gave to me A partridge in a pear tree.
On the second day of Christmas My true love gave to me Two turtle doves And a partridge in a pear tree.
On the third day of Christmas My true love gave to me Three French hens, Two turtle doves
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And a partridge in a pear tree.
On the fourth day of Christmas My true love gave to me Four calling birds, Three French hens, Two turtle doves And a partridge in a pear tree.
On the fifth day of Christmas My true love gave to me Five golden rings, Four calling birds, Three French hens, Two turtle doves And a partridge in a pear tree.
On the sixth day of Christmas My true love gave to me Six geese a-laying, Five golden rings, Four calling birds, Three French hens, Two turtle doves And a partridge in a pear tree.
Twelve drummers drumming. Picture: Getty
On the seventh day of Christmas My true love gave to me Seven swans a-swimming, Six geese a-laying, Five golden rings, Four calling birds, Three French hens, Two turtle doves And a partridge in a pear tree.
On the eighth day of Christmas My true love gave to me Eight maids a-milking, Seven swans a-swimming, Six geese a-laying,
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Five golden rings, Four calling birds, Three French hens, Two turtle doves And a partridge in a pear tree.
On the ninth day of Christmas My true love gave to me Nine ladies dancing, Eight maids a-milking, Seven swans a-swimming, Six geese a-laying, Five golden rings, Four calling birds, Three French hens, Two turtle doves And a partridge in a pear tree.
On the tenth day of Christmas My true love gave to me Ten lords a-leaping, Nine ladies dancing, Eight maids a-milking, Seven swans a-swimming, Six geese a-laying, Five golden rings, Four calling birds, Three French hens, Two turtle doves And a partridge in a pear tree.
On the eleventh day of Christmas My true love gave to me Eleven pipers piping, Ten lords a-leaping, Nine ladies dancing, Eight maids a-milking, Seven swans a-swimming, Six geese a-laying, Five golden rings, Four calling birds, Three French hens, Two turtle doves And a partridge in a pear tree.
On the twelfth day of Christmas My true love gave to me Twelve drummers drumming, Eleven pipers piping, Ten lords a-leaping, Nine ladies dancing, Eight maids a-milking, Seven swans a-swimming, Six geese a-laying, Five golden rings, Four calling birds, Three French hens, Two turtle doves And a partridge in a pear tree.
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4 of 4 12/6/2020, 7:54 PM Holidays in a Pandemic? Here’s What Happened in 1918 -... https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/09/us/pandemic-holi...
Holidays in a Pandemic? Here’s What Happened in 1918
Jacey Fortin
The festive season fell between two deadly waves of the deadly influenza outbreak. Families still gathered, often with empty chairs at the table.
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Credit...Library of Congress, via Associated Press
Dec. 9, 2020Updated 12:41 p.m. ET
Not long before Christmas, as the pandemic was taking a devastating toll in rural Iowa, Rebecca Tinti was visiting some neighbors who had fallen ill.
At the family’s farm, she found seven of them, including a newborn baby, bedridden with sickness, leaving a 6-year-old girl to take care of everyone else.
Ms. Tinti stepped in to help, but she couldn’t avert tragedy. “The mister had been waiting on the rest till he had a relapse and kept on getting worse, till he died a week later,” she wrote in a letter dated January 1919. “I stayed till the funeral, which was the day before Christmas.”
Ms. Tinti’s letters are now in the hands of her goddaughter’s daughter Ruth M. Lux, 72, of Lidderdale, Iowa. Ms. Lux has dozens of old family letters, which were passed down from her mother and her grandmother. “I call my house the Lidderdale branch of the National Archives,” she said.
Those letters — updates about corn harvests and slaughtered hogs, interspersed with reports of illness and death — are dispatches from the domestic front of a pandemic in which millions of Americans were sickened and 675,000 died, among at least 50 million deaths worldwide. It has been attributed to an H1N1 virus that originated in birds.
That pandemic, like the coronavirus today, seemed to roll across the United States in waves. The winter holidays in 1918 were marked by grievous loss. They came during a relative lull after the deadliest wave, in the fall. Another, smaller surge would peak shortly after New Year’s Day.
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Credit...Edward A. Rogers/Library of Congress, via Associated Press
But the national conversation around private family gatherings appeared to have been less charged in 1918 than it is today, as many weary from months of restrictions bristle at guidance from health agencies to stay home.
“Hundreds of thousands of people lost loved ones,” said J. Alexander Navarro, a medical historian at the University of Michigan and an editor of the online Influenza Encyclopedia. “But by the time of Thanksgiving, there really wasn’t much debate about whether or not they should get together.”
So they did, often with an empty chair at the table.
At the time, another major event was stealing newspaper headlines: the end of the First World War. Soldiers were returning to their homes, and the Allied victory was a cause for celebration.
“This year we have special and moving cause to be grateful and to rejoice,” President Woodrow Wilson said in a Thanksgiving proclamation, which did not mention the pandemic. “God has in His good pleasure given us peace.”
And although soldiers’ domestic and international travels played a major part in spreading the flu, news reports from the time suggest that the risk of infection did not stop people from celebrating the Allied victory in person.
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Credit...The New York Times
On Christmas Eve 1918, The New York Times reported that thousands of soldiers would be welcomed into homes in New York City and invited to attend dances and
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feasts. At one event at the 71st Regiment Armory on Park Avenue in Manhattan, “besides the fun and the dancing there will be 300 pounds of chocolate fudge made by pretty girls, and ever so many pounds of iced cake, mostly made by their mothers,” the report said.
Other celebrations were more subdued. For many people in the United States, the Christmas holiday was centered around the home, said Penne L. Restad, a historian with the University of Texas at Austin who is an expert on holidays.
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Holiday travel was less common in 1918 than it is today, in part because families tended to live closer together, Dr. Restad said. The practice of dragging an evergreen tree indoors to decorate it was in fashion. So were gifts for children, delivered by Santa Claus.
For many, church services were also a part of the holiday season. And in 1918, Ms. Lux’s great-grandmother Caroline Schumacher was sad to miss them.
“I suppose you’ve seen that the town is quarantined,” she said in a letter from Carroll, Iowa, dated Dec. 29. “Don’t know how long it will be closed yet. It is terrible when there is no church. It didn’t seem like Christmas at all.”
Because personal letters relayed the details of daily life, they sometimes preserved pieces of history that the newspapers overlooked, Dr. Restad said. “Domestic culture, and to a large degree consumer culture, is often recorded by women,” she added.
Ms. Lux’s family letters, some of which are hard to read because of wispy handwriting or irregular spelling and grammar, were transcribed in 2014 by Julia Evans, who was then studying history at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa, and now manages museum exhibits.
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Credit...The New York Times
Newspapers covered the pandemic, too, and reports from across the United States showed a patchwork of officials’ responses to the spread of the influenza.
In Hamilton, Mont., The Ravalli Republican reported that a monthslong, citywide shutdown was lifted in late December 1918 — just in time for churches and movie theaters to open on Christmas Day.
In Lodi, Calif., “owing to the presence of influenza here, Christmas celebrations have been greatly curtailed, though merchants report a good holiday business,” The Sacramento Bee reported on Christmas Eve. “There will be no municipal tree this year.”
And shortly after Christmas, The Chicago Defender published reports about families who had gathered for family visits or church services across Illinois. The reports were interspersed with notices about people who had fallen ill or died of influenza.
This year, with coronavirus cases rising and health professionals girding for a surge in infections associated with holiday travel, Ms. Lux plans to stay home alone on Christmas. But her family letters from a century ago told of gatherings, as well as grave diggings.
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“I was for three weeks busy doing the neighbors’ chores and burying the dead,” one relative, John Tinti, wrote in February 1919. “I helped lay away more people this winter than I ever did in all my life. It sure was awful.”
Margaret Hamilton, another relative, wrote that she nearly died herself. “My heart almost refused to work and my lips and nails were a purplish black,” she said in a March 1919 letter. “Sure almost went over.”
Ms. Lux was most impressed with Rebecca Tinti, the great-godmother whose letters told of multiple trips to take care of friends and neighbors who were gravely ill. “This lady was literally the Florence Nightingale of Adair County,” Ms. Lux said.
So on a windy day in April — the same month the global death toll from the coronavirus surpassed 200,000 — Ms. Lux traveled about 60 miles from Lidderdale to Casey, Iowa, to see the spot where Ms. Tinti was buried almost 90 years ago.
The grave was easy to find, in a small cemetery at the top of a hill. “I thought, ‘No one has put anything on these graves for decades and decades,’” Ms. Lux said.
She laid down a bouquet of silk flowers before driving back home.
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Coronavirus crisis: These 19 groceries have driven up your bill the most during pandemic
COVID-19 brought much of daily life in the U.S. to a halt in March and April of 2020, with stay-at-home orders prompting Americans to flock to their local grocery stores to stock up on essentials. As demand for groceries grew and many supply chains were interrupted, prices rose.
Groceries were 4.5% more expensive in June 2020 than they were in February 2020, the month before the coronavirus pandemic was declared a national emergency in the United States. And the prices of some items rose more than twice as much.
To determine the 19 food items driving up grocery bills the most during the coronavirus pandemic, 24/7 Wall St. analyzed changes in the consumer price index for all urban consumers from February to June 2020 for over 100 grocery items using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In order to avoid double counting and ambiguity, we excluded categories of groceries that include one or more items that also fall into another category. For example, we included the BLS' category “beef and veal” but did not include the more granular categories of “uncooked beef roasts,” “uncooked beef steaks,” and “uncooked ground beef.” We also excluded broader catch-all designations, such as “snacks,” or those categorized by the BLS as “other.”
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Consumers finally got some relief in July, when prices dropped 1.1% from June. This was due in part to a sharp decline in the price of meat. Many meat supply chains were
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disrupted in earlier months, when workers in several processing facilities across the country contracted the virus. In addition to cutting into the U.S. meat supply, outbreaks in the plants led to relatively high rates of COVID-19 per capita in the towns in which the plants are located. These are the cities in every state where COVID-19 is growing the fastest.
Americans have been going to the grocery store not just because they want to stock up, but also likely because some have had to prepare more food than usual. Many restaurants have been forced to limit diners to delivery only or outdoor seating due to social distancing restrictions, and others have shuttered for good because they could no longer afford to stay open. These are the 35 most popular restaurants that won’t reopen after the pandemic.
19. Flour and prepared flour mixes
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +4.5%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: May 2013
The price of flour and prepared flour mixes rose by 4.5% between February, a month before the coronavirus pandemic was declared a national emergency in the United States, and June. As is the case with many items on this list, the price increase for flour is likely tied to a surge in demand.
Flour is a critical ingredient in baking – an activity that surged in popularity as Americans have been confined to their homes during the pandemic. Vermont-based company King Arthur Flour reported a 2,000% increase in flour sales in March 2020 compared to the same month the previous year.
18. Shelf stable fish and seafood
• Price increase, Feb. -- June 2020: +4.6%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: May 2020
The price of shelf stable fish and seafood, which includes items like canned tuna and sardines, climbed by 4.6% from February to June. During that period, these grocery items
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hit their highest price point in over a decade. Shelf stable fish and seafood are one of several grocery categories on this list that can last for extended periods of time without spoiling. Sales of many grocery items with a long shelf life spiked during the initial phases of the pandemic, likely contributing to the increase in price.
17. Fresh sweet rolls, coffeecakes, doughnuts
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +4.8%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: June 2020
Fresh sweet rolls, coffeecakes, doughnuts is one several breakfast food categories to rank on this list. The 4.8% price increase of these and other breakfast items at the grocery store is likely tied to increased demand. With a record number of Americans working from home after lockdown measures have been instituted, demand for items such as sweet rolls and doughnuts – that under normal circumstances might be purchased during a commute – spiked at grocery stores (for home consumption-optional). These items cost more in June 2020 than in at least the last 10 years.
16. Carbonated drinks
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +5.1%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: June 2020
Like other items on this list, there was a surge in soft drinks sales during the pandemic. Increased demand may help explain the 5.1% increase in the price of carbonated drinks from February to June. As of June 2020, carbonated drinks cost more at grocery stores than they have at any point since at least 2010.
15. Soups
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +5.1%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: April 2020
Rising in price by 5.1% between February and June, soup is one of several items on this list that, during the COVID-19 pandemic, has hit its highest price in U.S. grocery stores in the last 10 years. Soup sold in grocery stores has a long shelf life and can be consumed many months after purchase. Early in the pandemic, soup sales were up over 100% from the same time the previous year.
14. Frozen fruits and vegetables
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +5.5%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: June 2020
Frozen fruits and vegetables are one of just 16 types of grocery items that increased in price by more than 5% between February and June. Unlike many of the other groceries on this list, the price of frozen fruits and vegetables over the past decade has not increased as much as the overall price of all groceries, only spiking recently. The price of frozen fruits and vegetables increased by 3.6% from February 2010 to February 2020, while the price of all items has increased by 19.3%.
13. Bacon, breakfast sausage, and related products
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +5.5%
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• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: June 2020
Because of issues related to supply chain and demand in China that caused the price of pork to increase in recent months, the price of bacon, breakfast sausage, and other related products has also increased. The recent price increase of these breakfast meats of 5.5% between February and June 2020 is part of a longer-term increase. From February 2010 through February 2020, the price of these products increased by close to 30%.
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12. Frozen fish and seafood
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +5.6%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: Sept. 2014
Like shelf stable fish and seafood, frozen fish and seafood can be kept for long periods of time. Foods that last for long periods have been in high demand since the pandemic began in the U.S. The consumer price index of frozen fish and seafood increased by 5.6% from February to June.
11. Breakfast cereal
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +5.9%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: Oct. 2015
The price of breakfast cereal had been declining since late October 2015 and was just 1.8% more expensive in November 2019 than in February 2010. Once people started working from home and were more likely to eat breakfast there as well, cereal prices began to spike. From each month from February through June 2020, the price of breakfast cereal increased by more than 1%, relative to a decade ago, growing by a total of 5.9%.
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10. Canned vegetables
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +6.4%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: June 2020
In spite of the recent spike, the price of canned vegetables has not increased nearly as much as the typical grocery item over the past decade. Even with the 6.4% price increase from February to June 2020, canned vegetables are just 12.3% more expensive as compared to a decade ago. Comparatively, the typical grocery item was 18.9% more expensive in June 2020 than in February 2010.
9. Dried beans, peas, and lentils
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +7.4%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: April 2015
Dried beans, peas, and lentils are one of just nine types of groceries that have increased in price by more than 7% since the beginning of the pandemic in the U.S. Americans bought over 200% more dried beans so far in 2020 than they did over the same period in 2019, and this increased demand led to higher prices. Like many of the other groceries on this list, dried beans, peas, and lentils can be stored for long periods of time, and Americans have been more likely to buy these kinds of items during the pandemic.
8. Peanut butter
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +7.9%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: Jan. 2013
Peanut butter is one of several shelf-stable, non-perishable grocery items that have become significantly more expensive since the COVID-19 pandemic reached the United States. Through the beginning of 2020, the price of peanut butter had been in decline for seven years. But between February 2020 and June 2020, the price rose by 7.9%.
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7. Ham
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +8.7%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: Oct. 2014
The prices of many groceries on this list spiked because of increased demand, but not all. Some groceries, including many meats like ham, increased in prices because of issues with supply. A number of U.S. meat and poultry plants have closed in recent months because of COVID-19 outbreaks, limiting production, which led to increased prices. Ham was 8.7% more expensive in June than it was in February, nearly double the 4.5% price increase of all foods that are prepared in the home.
6. Potatoes
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +8.7%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: June 2020
Though potatoes have had the eighth highest price increase of any grocery item since February, the spike in price may not be due to COVID-19. Potato prices ebb and flow with the seasons, typically peaking in August and hitting their lowest point of the year in December. Though potato prices are cyclical, prices over the past decade have increased more than all food item prices during that time. Potatoes were 36.4% more expensive in June 2020 than they were in February 2010, as compared to the 18.9% increase to the typical grocery item.
5. Frankfurters
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +8.8%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: June 2020
Even before the pandemic reached the United States, frankfurter prices were rising, increasing in price by 28.2% from February 2010 to February 2020, Well above the comparable 19.3% increase in prices for all grocery items. Like many other meat products, frankfurters were much more expensive in June than they were in February of 2020. Production at a number of meat production plants stalled because of COVID-19 outbreaks.
4. Chicken
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +9.4%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: June 2020
Chicken is one of just four grocery items that have gotten more than 9% more expensive amid the pandemic. The nation's chicken supply has been hampered as meat processors at several locations contracted COVID-19, forcing plant closures. This decreased supply, amid spiking demand, led to a 9.4% increase in chicken prices from February 2020 to June 2020.
3. Citrus fruits
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +10.3%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: August 2018
The reason that almost every item on this list is increasing in price can be directly tied to COVID-19 – whether people are stocking up on the food because it is non-perishable or
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because the pandemic has interrupted supply. Citrus fruits, however, are an exception. Citrus fruits prices tend to start increasing around March each year because of seasonality. The over 10% increase in price for citrus fruits from February to June of 2020 is not uncommon. Citrus fruits tend to peak in price around September-October and bottom out around March, when most varieties are no longer in season.
2. Pork chops
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +19.9%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: June 2020
Pork chops were nearly 20% more expensive in June 2020 than they were four months prior. Like many other meat products on this list, the supply of pork was impacted by the pandemic, when workers at meat processing plants fell ill with the virus and production was halted.
1. Beef and veal
• Price increase, February-June 2020: +22.7%
• Priciest month for grocery item since 2010: June 2020
Beef and veal had by far the largest percentage price increase of any grocery product so far throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, spiking by 22.7% from February to June 2020. For comparison, the typical grocery item increased by 4.5% during that time.
Even before the pandemic, the price of beef and veal had increased by more than double the percentage increase of the typical grocery item since 2010. Once meat production plants were shut down due to workers contracting COVID-19, meat and veal prices spiked even more. The price of beef and veal was 79.2% higher in June 2020 than it was February 2010 even as the typical grocery item increased by just 18.9% in that time.
24/7 Wall Street is a USA TODAY content partner offering financial news and commentary. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY.
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USA • TODAY
MQ!!!! From pocket change to nearly $10: The cost of a movie ticket the year you were born Grant Suneson 24/7 Wall Street Published 7:00 a.m. ET Aug. 29, 2019 Updated 11:32 a.m. ET Sep. 1, 2019
Moviegoers in the U.S. and Canada bought 1.3 billion movie tickets in 2018, according to the National Association of Theatre Owners. While this is higher than in 2017, it is still well below Hollywood’s best year. After peaking at 1.57 billion in 2002, ticket sales have steadily declined throughout the 21st century.
Despite the declining attendance, Hollywood has never made more money – 2018 had a record-breaking box office haul of $11.8 billion. This is largely because movie tickets have never been more expensive. The national average cost of a movie ticket in 2018 was $9.11, marking the first time the average price has eclipsed $9.00. For most of the 1990s, tickets sold for an average of less than $5 apiece, and dating back to the 1960s, many Americans could go to the movies for less than a buck.
24/7 Wall St. reviewed data from the National Association of Theatre Owners to determine the cost of a movie ticket the year you were born. The personal consumption expenditure price index was used to estimate the cost in the years for which there was no data. The year’s top grossing movie is the film released during that year with the highest domestic box office gross for its entire theatrical run, according to movie industry data site The Numbers.
The domestic box office has been dominated by superhero films in recent years. Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy, The Avengers franchise, and various recent takes on the X-Men and DC universes have all earned billions. These films have maintained a grip on Hollywood for a decade, largely because they tend to be financial successes.
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2018
• Avg. ticket price: $9.11
• Price adjusted for inflation: $9.11
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Black Panther
2017
• Avg. ticket price: $8.97
• Price adjusted for inflation: $9.16
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Star Wars Ep. VIII: The Last Jedi
2016
• Avg. ticket price: $8.65
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.94
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
2015
• Avg. ticket price: $8.43
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.84
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Star Wars Ep. VII: The Force Awakens
2014
• Avg. ticket price: $8.17
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.56
• Top-grossing movie of the year: American Sniper
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2013
• Avg. ticket price: $8.13
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.65
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
2012
• Avg. ticket price: $7.96
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.60
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Avengers
2011
• Avg. ticket price: $7.93
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.82
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II
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2010
• Avg. ticket price: $7.89
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.92
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Toy Story 3
2009
• Avg. ticket price: $7.50
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.70
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Avatar
2008
• Avg. ticket price: $7.18
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.33
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Dark Knight
2007
• Avg. ticket price: $6.88
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.33
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Spider-Man 3
2006
• Avg. ticket price: $6.55
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.09
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
2005
• Avg. ticket price: $6.41
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.23
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Star Wars Ep. III: Revenge of the Sith
2004
• Avg. ticket price: $6.21
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• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.21
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Shrek 2
2003
• Avg. ticket price: $6.03
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.13
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Finding Nemo
2002
• Avg. ticket price: $5.81
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.04
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Spider-Man
2001
• Avg. ticket price: $5.66
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.92
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
Sold information to Uber: Ex-Google engineer accused of stealing self-driving car trade secrets
2000
• Avg. ticket price: $5.39
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.82
• Top-grossing movie of the year: How the Grinch Stole Christmas
1999
• Avg. ticket price: $5.08
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.57
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Star Wars Ep. I: The Phantom Menace
1998
• Avg. ticket price: $4.69
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.11
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Saving Private Ryan
1997
• Avg. ticket price: $4.59
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.07
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Titanic
1996
• Avg. ticket price: $4.42
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.01
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Independence Day
1995
• Avg. ticket price: $4.35
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.09
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Toy Story
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1994
• Avg. ticket price: $4.18
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.00
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Lion King
1993
• Avg. ticket price: $4.14
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.11
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Jurassic Park
1992
• Avg. ticket price: $4.15
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.36
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Aladdin
1991
• Avg. ticket price: $4.21
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.66
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Beauty and the Beast
Spending smart: The 8 cardinal rules of using a credit card
1990
• Avg. ticket price: $4.22
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.11
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Home Alone
1989
• Avg. ticket price: $3.99
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.07
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Batman
1988
• Avg. ticket price: $4.11
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.70
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Rain Man
1987
• Avg. ticket price: $3.91
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.61
• Top-grossing movie of the year: 3 Men and a Baby
1986
• Avg. ticket price: $3.71
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.29
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Top Gun
1985
• Avg. ticket price: $3.55
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• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.24
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Back to the Future
1984
• Avg. ticket price: $3.36
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.08
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Ghostbusters
1983
• Avg. ticket price: $3.15
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.89
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Star Wars Ep. VI: Return of the Jedi
1982
• Avg. ticket price: $2.94
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.64
• Top-grossing movie of the year: ET: The Extra-Terrestrial
1981
• Avg. ticket price: $2.78
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.83
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Raiders of the Lost Ark
1980
• Avg. ticket price: $2.69
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.47
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Star Wars Ep. V: The Empire Strikes Back
1979
• Avg. ticket price: $2.52
• Price adjusted for inflation: $9.04
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Kramer vs. Kramer
1978
• Avg. ticket price: $2.34
• Price adjusted for inflation: $9.17
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Grease
1977
• Avg. ticket price: $2.23
• Price adjusted for inflation: $9.34
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Star Wars Ep. IV: A New Hope
1976
• Avg. ticket price: $2.13
• Price adjusted for inflation: $9.38
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Rocky
1975
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• Avg. ticket price: $2.05
• Price adjusted for inflation: $9.64
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Jaws
1974
• Avg. ticket price: $1.89
• Price adjusted for inflation: $9.93
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Blazing Saddles
1973
• Avg. ticket price: $1.76
• Price adjusted for inflation: $10.12
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Exorcist
1972
• Avg. ticket price: $1.70
• Price adjusted for inflation: $10.13
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Godfather
1971
• Avg. ticket price: $1.65
• Price adjusted for inflation: $10.16
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Billy Jack
1970
• Avg. ticket price: $1.55
• Price adjusted for inflation: $10.04
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Love Story
1969
• Avg. ticket price: $1.42
• Price adjusted for inflation: $9.77
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
1968
• Avg. ticket price: $1.31
• Price adjusted for inflation: $9.41
• Top-grossing movie of the year: 2001: A Space Odyssey
1967
• Avg. ticket price: $1.20
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.93
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Jungle Book
1966
• Avg. ticket price: $1.10
• Price adjusted for inflation: $8.47
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Bible
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1965
• Avg. ticket price: $1.01
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.93
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Sound of Music
1964
• Avg. ticket price: $0.93
• Price adjusted for inflation: $7.37
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Mary Poppins
1963
• Avg. ticket price: $0.85
• Price adjusted for inflation: $6.85
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Cleopatra
1962
• Avg. ticket price: $0.81
• Price adjusted for inflation: $6.61
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Longest Day
1961
• Avg. ticket price: $0.77
• Price adjusted for inflation: $6.33
• Top-grossing movie of the year: 101 Dalmatians
1960
• Avg. ticket price: $0.75
• Price adjusted for inflation: $6.27
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Swiss Family Robinson
1959
• Avg. ticket price: $0.68
• Price adjusted for inflation: $5.74
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Ben-Hur
1958
• Avg. ticket price: $0.65
• Price adjusted for inflation: $5.57
• Top-grossing movie of the year: South Pacific
1957
• Avg. ticket price: $0.62
• Price adjusted for inflation: $5.50
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Bridge on the River Kwai
1956
• Avg. ticket price: $0.59
• Price adjusted for inflation: $5.39
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• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Ten Commandments
1955
• Avg. ticket price: $0.58
• Price adjusted for inflation: $5.32
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Lady and the Tramp
1954
• Avg. ticket price: $0.55
• Price adjusted for inflation: $5.01
• Top-grossing movie of the year: White Christmas
1953
• Avg. ticket price: $0.51
• Price adjusted for inflation: $4.70
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Peter Pan
1952
• Avg. ticket price: $0.48
• Price adjusted for inflation: $4.44
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Greatest Show on Earth
1951
• Avg. ticket price: $0.47
• Price adjusted for inflation: $4.53
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Quo Vadis?
1950
• Avg. ticket price: $0.46
• Price adjusted for inflation: $4.79
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Cinderella
1949
• Avg. ticket price: $0.46
• Price adjusted for inflation: $4.69
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Samson and Delilah
1948
• Avg. ticket price: $0.44
• Price adjusted for inflation: $4.55
• Top-grossing movie of the year: The Snake Pit
1947
• Avg. ticket price: $0.44
• Price adjusted for inflation: $5.01
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Forever Amber
1946
• Avg. ticket price: $0.42
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• Price adjusted for inflation: $5.65
• Top-grossing movie of the year: Song of the South
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9 of 9 12/6/2020, 7:42 PM Here is Why Your Movie Ticket Costs So Much https://www.aarp.org/entertainment/movies-for-grownup...
Here is Why Your Movie Ticket Costs So Much
Stephanie Mansfield
Doug Menuez / Forrester Images
En español | When regularly priced tickets for the Martin Scorsese film The Irishman at Manhattan's ornate Belasco Theatre — $17 — sold out, serious cinephiles turned to ticket-scalping website StubHub and shelled out as much as $130 for a seat. Not including popcorn.
It was a limited four-week run, and the film (partly produced by Netflix, which owns distribution rights) could be seen only on independent big screens in New York and Los Angeles. Moviegoers considered this a historic cinematic event, and they were determined to see the heralded mob epic in theaters before it began streaming on Netflix.
Which raises the question: Why do even regular movie tickets cost so much?
According to the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO), the average ticket price for a movie in 2001 was $5.66. In 2006 the price jumped to $6.55. By 2018 tickets soared to $9.11, which means the cost of seeing a flick almost doubled in 17 years.
And those shown in IMAX, Dolby, RPX (large-screen format) and 4DX (motion seats, combined with effects like blasts of air) include a surcharge of a few dollars. In the case of 3-D, the surcharge is 33 percent higher.
Where you live also affects ticket price. In movie-speak, “top tier locations” command a premium. Tickets to Ford v Ferrari screening in Dolby at Manhattan's AMC Lincoln Square 13 are $26.49 (popcorn will run
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you $10.99). But in South Haven, Michigan, the same movie at the Michigan Theatre is $4 before 6 p,m., and $3 will get you a refillable plastic bucket for popcorn, with 75-cent refills.
According to NATO, inflation is to blame. “Movie tickets are actually cheaper than 50 years ago,” says Patrick Corcoran, the association's vice president and chief communications officer.
"Relatively speaking, it's an accurate assessment,” agrees Shawn Robbins, chief analyst for the industry magazine Boxoffice Pro. “Based on data from the Census Bureau and NATO itself, average household income has increased at a slightly higher rate than average ticket prices have, compared to 50 years ago. Going to the theater remains one of the more affordable entertainment options available to consumers, especially frugal moviegoers who book tickets for discounted showtimes or utilize certain subscription services."
But Jeff Bock, senior box office analyst at Exhibitor Relations, isn't buying it.
"That's NATO's standard answer. You can say it's inflation, but has your paycheck gone up that much, and how do you justify $10 bags of popcorn? Which is why half the people I see in theaters are sneaking in their own food.”
Analysts attribute the uptick in ticket prices to the rising costs of theater-worker salaries, rent, taxes, utilities and maintenance. Exhibitors don't pay anything to studios to show the films, Corcoran says; rather, they take a split of the box office receipts — about 53 percent of the tickets sold. The higher the ticket sales, the higher the profit.
"Ticket prices are dictated by a myriad of economic factors, including the need to pay staff wages, maintain premises and upgrade amenities while still splitting ticket revenues with studios,” Robbins says. “As the cost of living and household incomes increase alongside consumer expectation in metro areas and small-town America, so, too, does the cost of running a theater."
But as the price of admission rises, attendance falls, making theater owners nervous about 2019 box office returns. “We're running a little bit behind 2018, which had $1.3 billion in ticket revenue,” NATO's Corcoran says.
According to entertainment trade magazine Variety, midway through 2019 the domestic market has slid more than 6 percent from the same time last year.
Coincidentally, in August, AMC Theatres (the country's largest exhibitor) announced a new pricing system for its subscription service, adding a higher price for certain in-demand blockbusters in particular formats and locations.
The fact that fewer people go to the movies doesn't help box office totals. In an August 2019 survey by Statista, 46 percent of respondents said they do this just once a year.
What's more, a February 2018 survey by Morning Consult found that 35 percent of respondents said they went to fewer movies today than five years ago because of high ticket prices, 21 percent cited more options from streaming services, and 15 percent blamed lack of attendance on the less-than-stellar Hollywood clunkers.
But is the death knell for theaters premature? There was an uproar when 5-cent silent movies gave way to talkies, when television became ubiquitous in every home, when DVDs arrived to be watched on those televisions, and with the advent of streaming on Netfllx, Disney+, Hulu and Amazon Prime. Will the communal moviegoing experience disappear?
“If a studio spends $160 million for a movie, people will go and see it if it delivers the experience that others don't,” says 79-year-old actor, director and Academy Award–winning producer Tony Bill (The Sting). And he believes there are certain intimate films that should be seen only in theaters — no matter the cost.
Head of his own Hollywood production company, Barnstorm Films, Bill adds: “The emotional experience of an actor not jumping over fences is best seen on the big screen. And $17 tickets are actually cheap for that experience. And nobody forces you to buy junk food.
"The question is,” Bill says, “Has the human critter evolved to the point where telling stories in the dark around the campfire will no longer need the dark or the other people?"
2 of 2 12/7/2020, 6:55 PM Table 1 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: U.S. city average, December 2019
(Percent of all items)
U.S. city average Item and group CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 14.794 16.246 Food ...... 13.771 15.343
Food at home ...... 7.579 8.746 Cereals and bakery products ...... 984 1.124 Cereals and cereal products ...... 301 .366 Flour and prepared flour mixes ...... 040 .051 Breakfast cereal ...... 140 .166 Rice, pasta, cornmeal ...... 121 .150 Bakery products ...... 682 .757 Bread ...... 196 .212 Fresh biscuits, rolls, muffins ...... 099 .110 Cakes, cupcakes, and cookies ...... 175 .196 Other bakery products ...... 212 .239 Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs ...... 1.682 2.069 Meats, poultry, and fish ...... 1.581 1.947 Meats ...... 989 1.214 Beef and veal ...... 454 .561 Uncooked ground beef ...... 167 .218 Uncooked beef roasts ...... 070 .085 Uncooked beef steaks ...... 176 .207 Uncooked other beef and veal ...... 041 .052 Pork ...... 310 .389 Bacon, breakfast sausage, and related products ...... 128 .153 Ham ...... 062 .074 Pork chops ...... 048 .067 Other pork including roasts, steaks, and ribs ...... 072 .095 Other meats ...... 225 .264 Poultry ...... 323 .413 Chicken ...... 266 .355 Other uncooked poultry including turkey ...... 058 .058 Fish and seafood ...... 268 .321 Fresh fish and seafood ...... 135 .158 Processed fish and seafood ...... 133 .162 Eggs ...... 102 .121 Dairy and related products ...... 768 .840 Milk ...... 209 .252 Cheese and related products ...... 260 .267 Ice cream and related products ...... 108 .113 Other dairy and related products ...... 192 .207 Fruits and vegetables ...... 1.317 1.438 Fresh fruits and vegetables ...... 1.039 1.113 Fresh fruits ...... 537 .569 Apples ...... 074 .081 Bananas ...... 078 .090 Citrus fruits ...... 135 .154 Other fresh fruits ...... 250 .243 Fresh vegetables ...... 502 .544 Potatoes ...... 076 .084 Lettuce ...... 063 .065 Tomatoes ...... 080 .090 Other fresh vegetables ...... 282 .305 Processed fruits and vegetables ...... 278 .325 Canned fruits and vegetables ...... 145 .173 Frozen fruits and vegetables ...... 083 .090 Other processed fruits and vegetables including dried ...... 051 .062 Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials ...... 903 1.083 Juices and nonalcoholic drinks ...... 642 .810 Carbonated drinks ...... 263 .342 Frozen noncarbonated juices and drinks ...... 006 .008 Nonfrozen noncarbonated juices and drinks ...... 372 .460 Beverage materials including coffee and tea ...... 261 .273 Coffee ...... 167 .169 Other beverage materials including tea ...... 094 .104 Table 1 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: U.S. city average, December 2019-Continued
(Percent of all items)
U.S. city average Item and group CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
Other food at home ...... 1.925 2.193 Sugar and sweets ...... 262 .276 Sugar and sugar substitutes ...... 035 .040 Candy and chewing gum ...... 175 .180 Other sweets ...... 053 .056 Fats and oils ...... 209 .236 Butter and margarine ...... 062 .066 Salad dressing ...... 051 .061 Other fats and oils including peanut butter ...... 096 .109 Other foods ...... 1.453 1.681 Soups ...... 085 .089 Frozen and freeze dried prepared foods ...... 250 .295 Snacks ...... 329 .378 Spices, seasonings, condiments, sauces ...... 283 .319 Baby food ...... 042 .071 Other miscellaneous foods ...... 464 .530
Food away from home ...... 6.191 6.597 Full service meals and snacks ...... 3.127 2.884 Limited service meals and snacks ...... 2.665 3.266 Food at employee sites and schools ...... 145 .168 Food from vending machines and mobile vendors ...... 081 .117 Other food away from home ...... 173 .161 Alcoholic beverages ...... 1.023 .904 Alcoholic beverages at home ...... 572 .538 Beer, ale, and other malt beverages at home ...... 220 .276 Distilled spirits at home ...... 092 .097 Wine at home ...... 259 .165 Alcoholic beverages away from home ...... 452 .366
Housing ...... 42.107 40.581 Shelter ...... 33.158 31.342 Rent of primary residence ...... 7.792 10.600 Lodging away from home ...... 924 .564 Housing at school, excluding board ...... 118 .050 Other lodging away from home including hotels and motels ...... 807 .514 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 24.071 19.850 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 22.864 19.270 Unsampled owners’ equivalent rent of secondary residences ...... 1.208 .580 Tenants’ and household insurance ...... 371 .328 Fuels and utilities ...... 4.349 4.841 Household energy ...... 3.266 3.654 Fuel oil and other fuels ...... 170 .127 Fuel oil ...... 106 .080 Propane, kerosene, and firewood ...... 063 .048 Energy services ...... 3.096 3.527 Electricity ...... 2.405 2.788 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 691 .739 Water and sewer and trash collection services ...... 1.083 1.187 Water and sewerage maintenance ...... 795 .879 Garbage and trash collection ...... 288 .307 Household furnishings and operations ...... 4.600 4.397 Window and floor coverings and other linens ...... 279 .261 Floor coverings ...... 064 .046 Window coverings ...... 059 .040 Other linens ...... 157 .174 Furniture and bedding ...... 936 .906 Bedroom furniture ...... 336 .343 Living room, kitchen, and dining room furniture ...... 450 .445 Other furniture ...... 141 .107 Unsampled furniture ...... 009 .011 Appliances ...... 210 .248 Major appliances ...... 068 .101 Other appliances ...... 140 .143 Unsampled appliances ...... 003 .004 Other household equipment and furnishings ...... 537 .514 Clocks, lamps, and decorator items ...... 313 .301 Indoor plants and flowers ...... 091 .070 Table 1 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: U.S. city average, December 2019-Continued
(Percent of all items)
U.S. city average Item and group CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
Dishes and flatware ...... 054 .057 Nonelectric cookware and tableware ...... 079 .086 Tools, hardware, outdoor equipment and supplies ...... 872 1.034 Tools, hardware and supplies ...... 238 .285 Outdoor equipment and supplies ...... 448 .585 Unsampled tools, hardware, outdoor equipment and supplies ...... 186 .164 Housekeeping supplies ...... 891 .989 Household cleaning products ...... 351 .420 Household paper products ...... 221 .248 Miscellaneous household products ...... 319 .321 Household operations ...... 875 .445 Domestic services ...... 291 .100 Gardening and lawncare services ...... 303 .137 Moving, storage, freight expense ...... 087 .062 Repair of household items ...... 117 .102 Unsampled household operations ...... 078 .045
Apparel ...... 2.810 3.171 Men’s and boys’ apparel ...... 697 .811 Men’s apparel ...... 553 .619 Men’s suits, sport coats, and outerwear ...... 103 .079 Men’s underwear, nightwear, swimwear, and accessories ...... 155 .182 Men’s shirts and sweaters ...... 159 .186 Men’s pants and shorts ...... 131 .164 Unsampled men’s apparel ...... 006 .008 Boys’ apparel ...... 144 .192 Women’s and girls’ apparel ...... 1.158 1.194 Women’s apparel ...... 961 .916 Women’s outerwear ...... 067 .068 Women’s dresses ...... 106 .104 Women’s suits and separates ...... 496 .480 Women’s underwear, nightwear, swimwear, and accessories ...... 282 .253 Unsampled women’s apparel ...... 010 .012 Girls’ apparel ...... 197 .278 Footwear ...... 668 .879 Men’s footwear ...... 233 .330 Boys’ and girls’ footwear ...... 140 .240 Women’s footwear ...... 295 .309 Infants’ and toddlers’ apparel ...... 133 .159 Jewelry and watches ...... 154 .129 Watches ...... 038 .039 Jewelry ...... 116 .089
Transportation ...... 15.738 17.482 Private transportation ...... 14.465 16.557 New and used motor vehicles ...... 7.277 7.999 New vehicles ...... 3.734 3.595 Used cars and trucks ...... 2.533 3.610 Leased cars and trucks ...... 646 .585 Car and truck rental ...... 129 .108 Unsampled new and used motor vehicles ...... 235 .101 Motor fuel ...... 3.440 4.418 Gasoline (all types) ...... 3.362 4.326 Other motor fuels ...... 079 .092 Motor vehicle parts and equipment ...... 397 .475 Tires ...... 252 .287 Vehicle accessories other than tires ...... 145 .188 Motor vehicle maintenance and repair ...... 1.077 1.188 Motor vehicle body work ...... 058 .050 Motor vehicle maintenance and servicing ...... 627 .721 Motor vehicle repair ...... 333 .343 Unsampled service policies ...... 058 .073 Motor vehicle insurance ...... 1.701 1.920 Motor vehicle fees ...... 573 .558 State motor vehicle registration and license fees ...... 297 .315 Parking and other fees ...... 261 .227 Unsampled motor vehicle fees ...... 015 .016 Public transportation ...... 1.274 .925 Airline fares ...... 786 .521 Other intercity transportation ...... 180 .105 Table 1 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: U.S. city average, December 2019-Continued
(Percent of all items)
U.S. city average Item and group CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
Intracity transportation ...... 304 .298 Unsampled public transportation ...... 003 .001
Medical care ...... 8.833 7.546 Medical care commodities ...... 1.643 1.321 Medicinal drugs ...... 1.569 1.261 Prescription drugs ...... 1.184 .926 Nonprescription drugs ...... 385 .335 Medical equipment and supplies ...... 074 .059 Medical care services ...... 7.190 6.225 Professional services ...... 3.643 3.075 Physicians’ services ...... 1.811 1.505 Dental services ...... 990 .896 Eyeglasses and eye care ...... 369 .325 Services by other medical professionals ...... 474 .349 Hospital and related services ...... 2.378 2.022 Hospital services ...... 2.186 1.936 Nursing homes and adult day services ...... 122 .073 Care of invalids and elderly at home ...... 069 .013 Health insurance ...... 1.170 1.128
Recreation ...... 5.821 5.254 Video and audio ...... 1.518 1.583 Televisions ...... 097 .111 Cable and satellite television service ...... 1.159 1.208 Other video equipment ...... 042 .047 Video discs and other media, including rental of video ...... 084 .092 Audio equipment ...... 078 .067 Recorded music and music subscriptions ...... 046 .043 Unsampled video and audio ...... 012 .014 Pets, pet products and services ...... 1.203 1.121 Pets and pet products ...... 653 .688 Pet services including veterinary ...... 551 .433 Sporting goods ...... 597 .613 Sports vehicles including bicycles ...... 362 .408 Sports equipment ...... 225 .195 Unsampled sporting goods ...... 010 .010 Photography ...... 070 .058 Photographic equipment and supplies ...... 025 .026 Photographers and photo processing ...... 044 .032 Unsampled photography ...... 001 .001 Other recreational goods ...... 374 .408 Toys ...... 289 .334 Sewing machines, fabric and supplies ...... 021 .013 Music instruments and accessories ...... 047 .037 Unsampled recreation commodities ...... 017 .024 Other recreation services ...... 1.942 1.411 Club membership for shopping clubs, fraternal, or other organizations, or participant sports fees ...... 701 .501 Admissions ...... 704 .517 Fees for lessons or instructions ...... 213 .134 Unsampled recreation services ...... 324 .259 Recreational reading materials ...... 117 .060 Newspapers and magazines ...... 066 .028 Recreational books ...... 049 .032 Unsampled recreational reading materials ...... 002 .000
Education and communication ...... 6.770 6.505 Education ...... 3.032 2.174 Educational books and supplies ...... 110 .108 Tuition, other school fees, and childcare ...... 2.922 2.066 College tuition and fees ...... 1.579 1.024 Elementary and high school tuition and fees ...... 427 .264 Child care and nursery school ...... 762 .652 Technical and business school tuition and fees ...... 036 .039 Unsampled tuition, other school fees, and childcare ...... 119 .087 Communication ...... 3.738 4.331 Table 1 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: U.S. city average, December 2019-Continued
(Percent of all items)
U.S. city average Item and group CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
Postage and delivery services ...... 108 .111 Postage ...... 098 .094 Delivery services ...... 010 .017 Information and information processing ...... 3.630 4.220 Telephone services ...... 2.305 2.875 Wireless telephone services ...... 1.908 2.523 Land-line telephone services ...... 397 .352 Information technology, hardware and services ...... 1.325 1.345 Computers, peripherals, and smart home assistant devices ...... 298 .230 Computer software and accessories ...... 019 .016 Internet services and electronic information providers ...... 902 1.014 Telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items ...... 094 .077 Unsampled information and information processing ...... 012 .007
Other goods and services ...... 3.127 3.215 Tobacco and smoking products ...... 587 .954 Cigarettes ...... 509 .840 Tobacco products other than cigarettes ...... 060 .090 Unsampled tobacco and smoking products ...... 018 .024 Personal care ...... 2.540 2.262 Personal care products ...... 689 .747 Hair, dental, shaving, and miscellaneous personal care products ...... 370 .402 Cosmetics, perfume, bath, nail preparations and implements ...... 311 .330 Unsampled personal care products ...... 008 .015 Personal care services ...... 666 .624 Haircuts and other personal care services ...... 666 .624 Miscellaneous personal services ...... 984 .725 Legal services ...... 250 .122 Funeral expenses ...... 141 .087 Laundry and dry cleaning services ...... 219 .232 Apparel services other than laundry and dry cleaning ...... 030 .020 Financial services ...... 232 .169 Unsampled items ...... 112 .095 Miscellaneous personal goods ...... 200 .165
Special aggregate indexes
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 37.518 41.391 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 22.724 25.144 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 12.045 13.500 Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel ...... 9.235 10.330 Durables ...... 10.679 11.644 Services ...... 62.482 58.609 Rent of shelter ...... 32.787 31.014 Transportation services ...... 5.399 5.283 Other services ...... 11.681 10.600 All items less food ...... 86.229 84.657 All items less shelter ...... 66.842 68.658 All items less medical care ...... 91.167 92.454 Commodities less food ...... 23.747 26.048 Nondurables less food ...... 13.068 14.404 Nondurables less food and apparel ...... 10.258 11.234 Nondurables ...... 26.838 29.747 Apparel less footwear ...... 2.142 2.292 Services less rent of shelter ...... 29.696 27.595 Services less medical care services ...... 55.292 52.384 Energy ...... 6.706 8.072 All items less energy ...... 93.294 91.928 All items less food and energy ...... 79.524 76.585 Commodities less food and energy commodities ...... 20.137 21.503 Energy commodities ...... 3.610 4.546 Services less energy services ...... 59.387 55.083 Domestically produced farm food ...... 6.330 7.252 Utilities and public transportation ...... 8.917 9.722 Table 2 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Selected metropolitan areas, December 2019 (Cities normally published in November)
(Percent of all items)
Boston- Dallas- Denver- Cambridge- Fort Worth- Aurora- Newton, Arlington, Lakewood, Item and group MA-NH TX CO
CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 13.310 12.205 13.603 12.951 12.996 14.293 Food ...... 12.210 11.672 12.442 11.816 11.998 13.363 Food at home ...... 7.328 7.120 6.422 7.150 6.872 7.244 Food away from home ...... 4.882 4.553 6.020 4.666 5.127 6.118 Alcoholic beverages ...... 1.100 .532 1.161 1.135 .997 .930
Housing ...... 46.834 45.882 44.953 44.863 44.482 45.008 Shelter ...... 37.584 37.870 35.553 35.784 36.522 36.405 Rent of primary residence ...... 9.561 14.495 10.989 14.188 9.725 13.448 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 26.701 22.355 23.212 20.572 25.385 22.020 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 25.433 21.397 22.064 20.223 24.527 21.520 Fuels and utilities ...... 4.139 5.013 4.798 5.579 3.236 3.645 Household energy ...... 3.656 4.372 3.337 3.911 2.166 2.457 Energy services ...... 2.919 3.759 3.295 3.894 2.085 2.431 Electricity ...... 1.932 2.608 2.819 3.399 1.476 1.688 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 987 1.151 .476 .495 .610 .744 Household furnishings and operations ...... 5.110 3.000 4.602 3.499 4.724 4.959
Apparel ...... 2.855 2.452 3.602 3.523 2.746 3.003
Transportation ...... 11.333 14.247 15.732 18.156 14.888 15.815 Private transportation ...... 9.583 12.805 14.550 17.288 13.193 14.670 Motor fuel ...... 2.381 3.810 3.188 4.394 3.035 3.468 Gasoline (all types) ...... 2.360 3.807 3.154 4.357 2.961 3.461
Medical care ...... 8.271 7.652 8.045 7.116 8.625 6.079
Recreation ...... 5.126 4.897 5.158 4.318 6.178 5.823
Education and communication ...... 9.344 8.784 6.009 6.441 6.878 7.039
Other goods and services ...... 2.927 3.881 2.897 2.631 3.206 2.940
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 31.575 31.230 36.089 36.525 34.572 36.555 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 18.265 19.025 22.486 23.574 21.576 22.262 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 10.444 11.606 12.364 12.550 11.325 11.605 Durables ...... 7.820 7.419 10.123 11.024 10.251 10.657 Services ...... 68.425 68.770 63.911 63.475 65.428 63.445
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 91.729 92.348 91.955 92.884 91.375 93.921 All items less shelter ...... 62.416 62.130 64.447 64.216 63.478 63.595 Commodities less food ...... 19.365 19.558 23.647 24.709 22.574 23.192 Nondurables ...... 23.754 23.811 25.966 25.501 24.321 25.898 Nondurables less food ...... 11.544 12.139 13.525 13.685 12.323 12.535 Services less rent of shelter ...... 31.150 31.271 28.768 28.033 29.368 27.493 Services less medical care services ...... 61.375 62.218 57.326 57.477 58.212 58.383 Energy ...... 6.037 8.181 6.525 8.305 5.200 5.924 All items less energy ...... 93.963 91.819 93.475 91.695 94.800 94.076 All items less food and energy ...... 81.753 80.146 81.033 79.879 82.801 80.713 Table 2 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Selected metropolitan areas, December 2019 (Cities normally published in November)-Continued
(Percent of all items)
Minneapolis- Riverside- St. Paul- San Bernardino- San Diego- Bloomington, Ontario, Carlsbad, Item and group MN-WI CA CA
CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 13.734 15.954 13.284 15.191 16.305 19.535 Food ...... 12.543 14.991 12.666 14.488 14.747 17.884 Food at home ...... 7.261 8.634 6.651 8.115 7.749 9.832 Food away from home ...... 5.282 6.357 6.015 6.373 6.998 8.051 Alcoholic beverages ...... 1.191 .963 .617 .704 1.558 1.651
Housing ...... 42.728 39.026 47.037 49.611 43.994 40.566 Shelter ...... 33.765 30.902 38.109 40.404 36.530 34.045 Rent of primary residence ...... 7.076 9.121 8.280 13.161 10.368 12.466 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 24.891 20.722 28.885 26.446 24.837 20.873 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 22.173 19.760 28.197 25.968 24.045 20.547 Fuels and utilities ...... 3.246 3.729 5.112 5.518 3.031 3.167 Household energy ...... 2.474 2.939 3.291 3.636 1.845 2.111 Energy services ...... 2.386 2.899 3.238 3.609 1.809 2.081 Electricity ...... 1.544 1.823 2.587 2.967 1.452 1.753 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 842 1.077 .652 .642 .357 .328 Household furnishings and operations ...... 5.717 4.395 3.815 3.690 4.432 3.354
Apparel ...... 3.791 2.925 2.427 2.907 2.974 3.179
Transportation ...... 13.598 16.159 16.411 15.129 13.992 14.751 Private transportation ...... 12.020 15.546 15.395 14.281 12.310 13.910 Motor fuel ...... 3.068 4.206 5.344 5.534 3.507 4.983 Gasoline (all types) ...... 2.979 3.991 5.168 5.358 3.468 4.942
Medical care ...... 8.919 6.603 6.361 4.541 7.343 5.624
Recreation ...... 6.752 8.006 4.898 3.427 6.871 7.837
Education and communication ...... 7.104 7.172 6.876 6.798 5.554 5.872
Other goods and services ...... 3.373 4.155 2.706 2.396 2.967 2.636
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 36.749 40.476 35.798 35.504 35.715 40.859 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 23.015 24.522 22.515 20.313 19.410 21.324 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 12.737 13.565 11.796 12.618 11.363 13.566 Durables ...... 10.278 10.957 10.718 7.695 8.047 7.758 Services ...... 63.251 59.524 64.202 64.496 64.285 59.141
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 91.081 93.397 93.639 95.459 92.657 94.376 All items less shelter ...... 66.235 69.098 61.891 59.596 63.470 65.955 Commodities less food ...... 24.206 25.485 23.132 21.017 20.968 22.976 Nondurables ...... 26.471 29.519 25.080 27.809 27.668 33.101 Nondurables less food ...... 13.928 14.528 12.414 13.321 12.921 15.217 Services less rent of shelter ...... 29.883 28.918 26.372 24.419 28.004 25.297 Services less medical care services ...... 55.953 54.094 58.857 60.669 58.238 54.418 Energy ...... 5.543 7.145 8.635 9.169 5.352 7.094 All items less energy ...... 94.457 92.855 91.365 90.831 94.648 92.906 All items less food and energy ...... 81.914 77.864 78.698 76.343 79.901 75.022 Table 2 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Selected metropolitan areas, December 2019 (Cities normally published in November)-Continued
(Percent of all items)
Tampa- Washington- St. Petersburg- Urban Hawaii Arlington- Clearwater, Alexandria, Item and group FL DC-VA-MD-WV
CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 13.913 16.811 16.702 15.764 17.036 21.099 Food ...... 12.822 15.798 15.771 15.091 15.519 20.313 Food at home ...... 6.957 9.094 8.410 8.300 7.728 10.543 Food away from home ...... 5.865 6.703 7.361 6.791 7.790 9.769 Alcoholic beverages ...... 1.091 1.013 .932 .673 1.518 .787
Housing ...... 46.770 43.595 48.932 49.537 39.770 39.145 Shelter ...... 38.041 33.218 41.335 41.794 32.519 30.831 Rent of primary residence ...... 10.676 12.634 9.515 11.993 7.727 12.047 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 26.138 19.839 30.874 29.019 23.405 18.040 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 25.224 19.198 30.613 28.882 22.245 17.430 Fuels and utilities ...... 4.616 5.424 4.357 4.743 3.150 3.890 Household energy ...... 3.397 4.265 2.493 2.947 2.486 3.016 Energy services ...... 3.361 4.249 2.465 2.921 2.400 2.997 Electricity ...... 3.256 4.042 2.359 2.711 1.712 2.121 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 105 .207 .107 .210 .688 .877 Household furnishings and operations ...... 4.113 4.953 3.240 3.001 4.101 4.424
Apparel ...... 1.826 3.077 2.674 3.122 3.376 4.000
Transportation ...... 14.561 18.471 11.804 11.278 15.344 16.458 Private transportation ...... 13.500 17.552 10.619 10.197 12.886 15.272 Motor fuel ...... 3.306 4.501 2.999 3.755 2.374 3.739 Gasoline (all types) ...... 3.227 4.357 2.991 3.733 2.329 3.705
Medical care ...... 8.197 5.398 6.939 7.222 7.860 7.536
Recreation ...... 4.935 3.391 4.755 4.610 5.922 4.045
Education and communication ...... 6.831 6.659 5.868 6.770 7.508 4.888
Other goods and services ...... 2.967 2.597 2.325 1.697 3.183 2.828
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 33.382 41.499 33.449 32.653 37.216 44.474 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 19.469 24.689 16.747 16.889 20.180 23.375 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 10.079 12.466 9.757 10.782 10.834 13.447 Durables ...... 9.390 12.223 6.990 6.107 9.346 9.927 Services ...... 66.618 58.501 66.551 67.347 62.784 55.526
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 91.803 94.602 93.061 92.778 92.140 92.464 All items less shelter ...... 61.959 66.782 58.665 58.206 67.481 69.169 Commodities less food ...... 20.560 25.702 17.679 17.562 21.698 24.162 Nondurables ...... 23.992 29.277 26.459 26.546 27.871 34.547 Nondurables less food ...... 11.170 13.479 10.689 11.455 12.352 14.234 Services less rent of shelter ...... 28.999 25.538 25.450 25.892 30.595 24.957 Services less medical care services ...... 59.809 54.054 60.814 61.209 56.290 49.375 Energy ...... 6.703 8.766 5.492 6.702 4.860 6.755 All items less energy ...... 93.297 91.234 94.508 93.298 95.140 93.245 All items less food and energy ...... 80.475 75.437 78.737 78.207 79.622 72.933 Table 3 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Selected metropolitan areas, December 2019
(Percent of all items)
Atlanta- Baltimore- Chicago- Detroit- Sandy Springs- Columbia- Naperville- Warren- Roswell, Towson, Elgin, Dearborn, Item and group GA MD IL-IN-WI MI
CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 14.385 17.733 13.528 13.430 15.699 16.591 14.461 15.544 Food ...... 13.382 17.035 12.676 12.696 14.553 15.659 13.307 14.630 Food at home ...... 6.754 9.725 6.405 7.229 8.009 8.696 7.215 9.165 Food away from home ...... 6.628 7.310 6.271 5.467 6.545 6.963 6.092 5.465 Alcoholic beverages ...... 1.002 .698 .852 .734 1.146 .932 1.153 .914
Housing ...... 42.807 41.142 43.114 45.254 41.581 40.985 38.973 37.369 Shelter ...... 33.021 31.043 35.688 36.311 33.330 32.868 29.618 28.826 Rent of primary residence ...... 6.808 9.316 6.320 11.632 7.605 9.889 5.194 8.505 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 24.756 20.921 28.272 23.907 24.564 22.175 23.098 19.447 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 23.481 20.394 27.071 23.507 23.107 21.226 21.282 18.672 Fuels and utilities ...... 5.052 5.413 3.371 4.435 4.062 4.377 4.349 4.565 Household energy ...... 3.929 4.169 2.969 3.830 3.055 3.339 3.469 3.560 Energy services ...... 3.897 4.151 2.842 3.778 3.035 3.331 3.446 3.536 Electricity ...... 2.702 3.034 2.414 3.071 1.894 2.119 2.101 2.167 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 1.196 1.117 .428 .707 1.141 1.212 1.345 1.369 Household furnishings and operations ...... 4.734 4.686 4.055 4.509 4.189 3.741 5.006 3.978
Apparel ...... 3.019 3.586 2.304 3.286 2.958 2.993 3.114 3.552
Transportation ...... 16.880 17.384 15.469 15.488 13.748 14.798 20.494 20.461 Private transportation ...... 15.430 16.169 13.902 14.204 12.245 13.903 19.326 20.122 Motor fuel ...... 4.018 4.236 3.029 4.200 3.044 3.871 3.171 4.134 Gasoline (all types) ...... 3.975 4.229 2.971 4.193 2.998 3.816 3.128 4.094
Medical care ...... 8.840 7.450 9.002 8.243 9.715 8.061 8.262 6.839
Recreation ...... 4.553 3.646 5.749 4.483 5.186 5.650 4.849 5.153
Education and communication ...... 6.836 6.447 8.248 6.788 7.735 7.282 6.390 7.137
Other goods and services ...... 2.680 2.611 2.586 3.027 3.378 3.639 3.458 3.947
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 37.613 40.153 35.355 35.026 37.088 38.556 38.483 41.227 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 23.228 22.419 21.827 21.596 21.388 21.965 24.023 25.683 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 12.658 13.075 10.373 12.951 11.771 12.872 11.732 13.458 Durables ...... 10.570 9.344 11.455 8.645 9.617 9.093 12.291 12.225 Services ...... 62.387 59.847 64.645 64.974 62.912 61.444 61.517 58.773
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 91.160 92.550 90.998 91.757 90.285 91.939 91.738 93.161 All items less shelter ...... 66.979 68.957 64.312 63.689 66.670 67.132 70.382 71.174 Commodities less food ...... 24.231 23.118 22.679 22.330 22.535 22.897 25.176 26.597 Nondurables ...... 27.042 30.809 23.900 26.381 27.471 29.463 26.192 29.002 Nondurables less food ...... 13.660 13.774 11.224 13.685 12.917 13.804 12.885 14.371 Services less rent of shelter ...... 29.746 29.048 29.346 29.000 29.901 28.870 32.304 30.322 Services less medical care services ...... 55.551 53.910 57.342 58.102 55.046 54.640 54.722 53.025 Energy ...... 7.947 8.405 5.999 8.030 6.099 7.210 6.640 7.694 All items less energy ...... 92.053 91.595 94.001 91.970 93.901 92.790 93.360 92.306 All items less food and energy ...... 78.671 74.560 81.325 79.274 79.348 77.131 80.053 77.675 Table 3 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Selected metropolitan areas, December 2019-Continued
(Percent of all items)
Houston- Los Angeles- Miami- New York- The Woodlands- Long Beach- Fort Lauderdale- Newark- Sugar Land, Anaheim, West Palm Beach, Jersey City, Item and group TX CA FL NY-NJ-PA
CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 13.750 17.141 15.684 18.106 11.112 14.069 13.330 15.136 Food ...... 12.781 16.504 14.627 17.180 10.273 13.146 12.441 14.613 Food at home ...... 6.470 8.330 6.906 8.994 5.864 7.941 6.825 8.384 Food away from home ...... 6.311 8.174 7.721 8.186 4.408 5.206 5.616 6.229 Alcoholic beverages ...... 969 .636 1.057 .926 .839 .923 .889 .523
Housing ...... 42.751 40.216 47.183 47.071 50.601 46.359 46.666 44.712 Shelter ...... 33.181 30.714 40.205 40.282 42.131 37.821 39.396 37.761 Rent of primary residence ...... 8.086 11.498 13.755 16.681 11.427 16.095 12.127 15.637 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 23.774 18.542 25.539 23.023 29.675 21.019 25.994 21.296 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 22.696 18.277 24.857 22.506 28.260 20.580 24.813 20.880 Fuels and utilities ...... 4.362 4.735 3.285 3.631 4.228 4.563 3.773 4.059 Household energy ...... 3.286 3.613 2.282 2.569 3.159 3.335 3.244 3.470 Energy services ...... 3.237 3.596 2.266 2.545 3.128 3.300 2.781 3.186 Electricity ...... 2.789 3.149 1.709 1.956 3.063 3.231 1.855 2.116 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 448 .448 .558 .589 .065 .069 .926 1.070 Household furnishings and operations ...... 5.208 4.766 3.694 3.158 4.242 3.975 3.498 2.893
Apparel ...... 3.363 5.288 2.814 3.549 2.379 3.225 2.885 2.582
Transportation ...... 16.513 17.136 13.455 14.187 14.785 15.977 11.966 13.690 Private transportation ...... 15.050 16.065 12.119 13.015 13.656 14.992 9.444 11.297 Motor fuel ...... 3.346 4.324 4.145 5.387 3.830 4.713 2.171 2.908 Gasoline (all types) ...... 3.286 4.225 4.114 5.369 3.783 4.627 2.136 2.880
Medical care ...... 8.018 6.072 6.069 5.208 8.347 7.941 7.476 6.381
Recreation ...... 5.673 4.290 4.260 3.439 3.977 3.275 5.723 5.660
Education and communication ...... 7.039 6.725 7.458 5.852 5.992 6.233 8.785 8.596
Other goods and services ...... 2.892 3.134 3.075 2.588 2.808 2.921 3.169 3.243
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 37.929 43.391 33.617 37.879 29.956 35.568 28.575 31.742 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 24.179 26.251 17.932 19.773 18.844 21.499 15.245 16.607 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 11.758 15.234 11.178 13.282 10.724 12.697 9.668 10.287 Durables ...... 12.421 11.016 6.755 6.491 8.121 8.802 5.577 6.320 Services ...... 62.071 56.609 66.383 62.121 70.044 64.432 71.425 68.258
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 91.982 93.928 93.931 94.792 91.653 92.059 92.524 93.619 All items less shelter ...... 66.819 69.286 59.795 59.718 57.869 62.179 60.604 62.239 Commodities less food ...... 25.149 26.887 18.990 20.699 19.683 22.422 16.134 17.130 Nondurables ...... 25.508 32.375 26.862 31.388 21.835 26.766 22.998 25.422 Nondurables less food ...... 12.727 15.871 12.235 14.208 11.563 13.620 10.557 10.809 Services less rent of shelter ...... 29.350 26.163 26.388 22.013 28.234 26.811 32.387 30.776 Services less medical care services ...... 55.405 51.466 61.384 57.694 63.006 57.638 65.075 62.877 Energy ...... 6.632 7.937 6.427 7.955 6.988 8.048 5.415 6.378 All items less energy ...... 93.368 92.063 93.573 92.045 93.012 91.952 94.585 93.622 All items less food and energy ...... 80.587 75.559 78.946 74.865 82.739 78.806 82.145 79.009 Table 3 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Selected metropolitan areas, December 2019-Continued
(Percent of all items)
Philadelphia- Phoenix- San Francisco- Seattle- Camden- Mesa- Oakland- Tacoma- Wilmington, Scottsdale, Hayward, Bellevue, Item and group PA-NJ-DE-MD AZ CA WA
CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 14.320 18.102 13.253 16.313 13.562 18.395 16.072 17.993 Food ...... 13.494 17.258 12.417 15.009 12.474 17.511 14.582 17.120 Food at home ...... 7.453 9.824 6.190 7.568 6.303 10.103 7.768 9.034 Food away from home ...... 6.041 7.433 6.227 7.442 6.171 7.408 6.814 8.086 Alcoholic beverages ...... 827 .844 .836 1.304 1.088 .884 1.489 .873
Housing ...... 42.218 41.834 43.617 45.112 53.073 47.841 44.195 44.384 Shelter ...... 32.949 32.889 34.155 37.349 45.503 40.712 35.891 36.664 Rent of primary residence ...... 5.442 7.616 6.601 14.971 10.806 19.037 10.783 14.209 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 26.138 24.198 26.510 21.765 33.234 20.652 23.963 21.260 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 24.068 23.217 24.185 20.785 32.382 19.864 22.320 20.687 Fuels and utilities ...... 4.371 5.204 4.037 4.853 3.501 3.940 3.316 3.865 Household energy ...... 3.500 4.183 2.758 3.479 2.156 2.547 1.934 2.486 Energy services ...... 3.015 3.715 2.746 3.457 2.135 2.522 1.890 2.439 Electricity ...... 2.087 2.597 2.480 3.171 1.744 2.106 1.428 1.925 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 928 1.118 .266 .286 .390 .415 .462 .514 Household furnishings and operations ...... 4.899 3.742 5.425 2.909 4.069 3.188 4.988 3.855
Apparel ...... 2.853 2.878 2.667 3.674 2.026 2.751 3.472 3.752
Transportation ...... 15.105 13.175 15.902 13.443 10.820 12.751 13.447 15.015 Private transportation ...... 13.536 12.143 14.850 12.820 9.132 11.651 12.000 13.655 Motor fuel ...... 2.785 3.501 3.706 4.856 2.382 4.071 2.866 4.488 Gasoline (all types) ...... 2.703 3.488 3.642 4.829 2.352 4.063 2.799 4.413
Medical care ...... 8.693 6.778 9.872 8.155 6.448 5.243 6.833 5.038
Recreation ...... 5.205 5.488 5.886 4.635 4.260 4.002 6.585 5.655
Education and communication ...... 8.316 8.235 5.397 5.179 7.213 6.756 6.481 5.631
Other goods and services ...... 3.290 3.510 3.406 3.489 2.598 2.261 2.915 2.531
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 35.494 38.480 37.176 38.568 27.431 35.800 35.570 38.580 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 21.174 20.378 23.923 22.254 13.869 17.405 19.498 20.587 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 11.867 12.838 12.825 15.244 7.993 10.990 10.961 12.823 Durables ...... 9.307 7.541 11.098 7.010 5.876 6.415 8.537 7.764 Services ...... 64.506 61.520 62.824 61.432 72.569 64.200 64.430 61.420
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 91.307 93.222 90.128 91.845 93.552 94.757 93.167 94.962 All items less shelter ...... 67.051 67.111 65.845 62.651 54.497 59.288 64.109 63.336 Commodities less food ...... 22.001 21.222 24.759 23.558 14.957 18.289 20.987 21.460 Nondurables ...... 26.188 30.939 26.078 31.558 21.555 29.385 27.033 30.816 Nondurables less food ...... 12.694 13.682 13.661 16.548 9.081 11.874 12.450 13.695 Services less rent of shelter ...... 31.958 29.152 28.953 24.309 27.303 23.772 28.773 25.020 Services less medical care services ...... 57.435 56.080 54.976 55.103 67.190 59.910 58.625 57.010 Energy ...... 6.285 7.684 6.464 8.335 4.538 6.617 4.799 6.974 All items less energy ...... 93.715 92.316 93.536 91.665 95.462 93.383 95.201 93.026 All items less food and energy ...... 80.222 75.058 81.119 76.655 82.988 75.872 80.618 75.906 Table 3 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Selected metropolitan areas, December 2019-Continued
(Percent of all items)
St. Louis, Urban Alaska MO-IL Item and group
CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 14.243 15.328 15.346 24.677 Food ...... 13.050 13.849 14.048 23.572 Food at home ...... 7.301 8.294 8.483 14.745 Food away from home ...... 5.749 5.554 5.564 8.827 Alcoholic beverages ...... 1.193 1.479 1.298 1.105
Housing ...... 41.397 38.481 40.743 36.155 Shelter ...... 31.178 28.603 31.986 27.682 Rent of primary residence ...... 5.829 6.754 7.316 13.003 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 23.937 20.611 23.654 14.039 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 21.971 19.470 22.044 13.459 Fuels and utilities ...... 4.979 5.545 4.918 4.293 Household energy ...... 3.493 4.162 3.888 3.475 Energy services ...... 3.426 4.052 3.808 3.447 Electricity ...... 2.313 2.905 2.146 2.180 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 1.113 1.147 1.662 1.267 Household furnishings and operations ...... 5.240 4.332 3.839 4.180
Apparel ...... 2.257 2.512 3.011 4.281
Transportation ...... 16.801 17.851 15.454 13.880 Private transportation ...... 15.513 17.097 13.276 12.411 Motor fuel ...... 3.355 4.581 3.540 3.870 Gasoline (all types) ...... 3.286 4.478 3.416 3.864
Medical care ...... 8.981 7.532 8.473 6.948
Recreation ...... 5.629 5.424 7.456 4.914
Education and communication ...... 7.019 8.715 6.110 5.982
Other goods and services ...... 3.672 4.158 3.407 3.164
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 37.517 39.522 39.382 47.353 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 23.273 24.194 24.036 22.677 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 11.645 13.239 12.589 14.372 Durables ...... 11.628 10.955 11.447 8.304 Services ...... 62.483 60.478 60.618 52.647
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 91.019 92.468 91.527 93.052 All items less shelter ...... 68.822 71.397 68.014 72.318 Commodities less food ...... 24.466 25.673 25.335 23.782 Nondurables ...... 25.889 28.567 27.935 39.049 Nondurables less food ...... 12.838 14.718 13.887 15.477 Services less rent of shelter ...... 31.732 32.276 28.897 25.187 Services less medical care services ...... 55.176 54.182 53.854 47.263 Energy ...... 6.847 8.743 7.428 7.346 All items less energy ...... 93.153 91.257 92.572 92.654 All items less food and energy ...... 80.103 77.409 78.525 69.082 Table 4 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Regions1, December 2019
(Percent of all items)
Northeast Midwest South West Item and group CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 14.318 15.843 15.284 16.066 14.740 16.035 14.869 16.944 Food ...... 13.374 14.934 14.121 14.939 13.787 15.302 13.795 15.989 Food at home ...... 7.656 8.935 7.715 8.284 7.532 8.803 7.488 8.900 Food away from home ...... 5.719 5.999 6.406 6.655 6.256 6.499 6.306 7.089 Alcoholic beverages ...... 944 .909 1.163 1.126 .953 .732 1.074 .955
Housing ...... 43.707 42.286 38.625 37.154 41.327 40.160 44.432 42.651 Shelter ...... 34.903 33.034 29.402 27.428 31.950 30.351 36.134 34.564 Rent of primary residence ...... 8.279 10.642 5.832 7.600 7.158 10.192 9.666 13.458 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 25.285 21.493 22.180 18.850 23.428 19.213 25.365 20.358 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 23.751 20.960 20.777 18.122 22.469 18.655 24.213 19.831 Fuels and utilities ...... 4.350 4.721 4.421 4.980 4.732 5.386 3.791 4.089 Household energy ...... 3.650 3.952 3.387 3.852 3.556 4.049 2.508 2.770 Energy services ...... 3.097 3.521 3.278 3.728 3.484 4.001 2.453 2.742 Electricity ...... 2.107 2.376 2.226 2.579 3.026 3.542 1.936 2.228 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 990 1.145 1.053 1.149 .458 .459 .517 .514 Household furnishings and operations ...... 4.454 4.532 4.802 4.746 4.645 4.423 4.506 3.998
Apparel ...... 2.714 2.674 3.073 3.266 2.809 3.357 2.694 3.187
Transportation ...... 13.806 15.839 16.556 18.313 16.835 18.361 15.153 16.784 Private transportation ...... 12.098 14.403 15.393 17.558 15.767 17.662 13.854 15.773 New and used motor vehicles ...... 5.914 6.927 7.835 8.455 8.186 8.848 6.698 7.243 New vehicles ...... 2.836 3.356 3.566 3.052 4.506 4.460 3.508 3.032 Used cars and trucks ...... 1.869 2.445 2.905 4.415 2.971 3.810 2.186 3.510 Motor fuel ...... 2.757 3.590 3.576 4.494 3.585 4.592 3.663 4.693 Gasoline (all types) ...... 2.719 3.536 3.472 4.356 3.513 4.501 3.564 4.608
Medical care ...... 8.601 7.025 9.864 8.770 9.156 7.943 7.843 6.417 Medical care commodities ...... 1.524 1.228 1.816 1.479 1.692 1.329 1.543 1.250 Medical care services ...... 7.077 5.798 8.048 7.291 7.464 6.614 6.300 5.167 Professional services ...... 3.669 2.930 4.046 3.606 3.743 3.201 3.204 2.592
Recreation ...... 5.665 5.478 6.339 6.007 5.588 4.544 5.873 5.458
Education and communication ...... 8.012 7.487 6.858 6.675 6.484 6.420 6.156 5.815
Other goods and services ...... 3.177 3.367 3.401 3.748 3.061 3.180 2.980 2.743
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 34.200 38.376 39.948 43.327 38.695 42.111 36.706 40.977 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 19.882 22.533 24.664 27.262 23.955 26.076 21.837 24.032 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 11.252 12.188 13.057 14.320 12.250 13.840 11.642 13.304 Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel ...... 8.537 9.514 9.984 11.054 9.441 10.483 8.948 10.117 Durables ...... 8.630 10.345 11.607 12.941 11.705 12.237 10.195 10.728 Services ...... 65.800 61.624 60.052 56.673 61.305 57.889 63.294 59.023 Rent of shelter ...... 34.563 32.725 28.994 27.042 31.516 29.990 35.850 34.311 Transportation services ...... 5.944 5.995 5.704 5.605 5.173 4.978 5.072 4.952 Other services ...... 13.268 12.115 11.930 11.235 11.149 10.026 11.015 9.834
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 91.399 92.975 90.136 91.230 90.844 92.057 92.157 93.583 All items less food ...... 86.626 85.066 85.879 85.061 86.213 84.698 86.205 84.011 All items less shelter ...... 65.097 66.966 70.598 72.572 68.050 69.649 63.866 65.436 Commodities less food ...... 20.826 23.442 25.827 28.388 24.908 26.809 22.912 24.988 Nondurables ...... 25.570 28.031 28.341 30.386 26.990 29.874 26.511 30.248 Nondurables less food ...... 12.196 13.097 14.220 15.447 13.203 14.572 12.717 14.259 Nondurables less food and apparel ...... 9.482 10.422 11.147 12.180 10.394 11.215 10.023 11.072 Services less rent of shelter ...... 31.236 28.900 31.058 29.631 29.789 27.899 27.444 24.712 Services less medical care services ...... 58.723 55.827 52.004 49.381 53.841 51.275 56.994 53.856 Energy ...... 6.408 7.542 6.964 8.346 7.141 8.641 6.171 7.463 All items less energy ...... 93.592 92.458 93.036 91.654 92.859 91.359 93.829 92.537 All items less food and energy ...... 80.218 77.524 78.916 76.714 79.072 76.057 80.035 76.548 Commodities less food and energy commodities ...... 17.515 19.420 22.142 23.770 21.251 22.169 19.194 20.267 Energy commodities ...... 3.311 4.022 3.685 4.618 3.657 4.640 3.718 4.720 Services less energy services ...... 62.703 58.104 56.774 52.945 57.821 53.888 60.841 56.281
1 Regions defined as the four Census regions. See map in Brief Explanation of the CPI. Table 5 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Population size classes1 December 2019
(Percent of all items)
Size class A Size class B/C Item and group CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 14.311 16.377 15.200 16.149 Food ...... 13.238 15.515 14.220 15.214 Food at home ...... 6.993 8.655 8.073 8.813 Food away from home ...... 6.245 6.860 6.146 6.401 Alcoholic beverages ...... 1.073 .862 .981 .935
Housing ...... 44.882 43.619 39.769 38.328 Shelter ...... 36.624 35.526 30.238 28.240 Rent of primary residence ...... 9.646 13.257 6.230 8.630 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 25.721 21.434 22.681 18.675 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 24.440 20.836 21.535 18.108 Fuels and utilities ...... 3.895 4.409 4.731 5.162 Household energy ...... 2.924 3.334 3.554 3.891 Energy services ...... 2.765 3.231 3.375 3.746 Electricity ...... 2.057 2.444 2.698 3.043 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 708 .787 .677 .703 Household furnishings and operations ...... 4.364 3.684 4.799 4.926
Apparel ...... 2.920 3.278 2.717 3.091
Transportation ...... 14.262 15.424 16.982 19.008 Private transportation ...... 12.607 14.205 16.030 18.301 New and used motor vehicles ...... 6.010 5.957 8.344 9.513 New vehicles ...... 3.217 2.878 4.170 4.127 Used cars and trucks ...... 1.688 2.250 3.244 4.618 Motor fuel ...... 3.097 4.204 3.729 4.577 Gasoline (all types) ...... 3.047 4.154 3.627 4.453
Medical care ...... 7.857 6.537 9.655 8.295 Medical care commodities ...... 1.361 1.064 1.880 1.511 Medical care services ...... 6.496 5.472 7.775 6.784 Professional services ...... 3.244 2.677 3.979 3.370
Recreation ...... 5.322 4.797 6.241 5.593
Education and communication ...... 7.377 6.903 6.260 6.209
Other goods and services ...... 3.068 3.066 3.177 3.327
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 34.044 37.538 40.444 44.248 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 19.733 21.160 25.243 28.099 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 11.033 12.637 12.897 14.141 Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel ...... 8.113 9.360 10.180 11.049 Durables ...... 8.700 8.523 12.347 13.959 Services ...... 65.956 62.462 59.556 55.752 Rent of shelter ...... 36.289 35.240 29.837 27.880 Transportation services ...... 5.779 5.626 5.079 5.029 Other services ...... 12.327 11.112 11.136 10.219
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 92.143 93.463 90.345 91.705 All items less food ...... 86.762 84.485 85.780 84.786 All items less shelter ...... 63.376 64.474 69.762 71.760 Commodities less food ...... 20.806 22.022 26.224 29.034 Nondurables ...... 25.344 29.014 28.097 30.290 Nondurables less food ...... 12.106 13.499 13.878 15.075 Nondurables less food and apparel ...... 9.186 10.222 11.161 11.984 Services less rent of shelter ...... 29.667 27.223 29.719 27.871 Services less medical care services ...... 59.460 56.990 51.781 48.968 Energy ...... 6.021 7.539 7.283 8.468 All items less energy ...... 93.979 92.461 92.717 91.532 All items less food and energy ...... 80.742 76.946 78.497 76.318 Commodities less food and energy commodities ...... 17.551 17.715 22.316 24.312 Energy commodities ...... 3.256 4.308 3.908 4.722 Services less energy services ...... 63.191 59.232 56.181 52.006
1 See Table 7 for definitions of size classes by region. Table 6 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Cross classification of region1 and population size class2, December 2019
(Percent of all items)
Northeast
Item and group Size class A Size class B/C
CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 13.509 15.178 15.376 16.613 Food ...... 12.593 14.600 14.394 15.322 Food at home ...... 7.032 8.429 8.470 9.521 Food away from home ...... 5.562 6.171 5.924 5.800 Alcoholic beverages ...... 916 .578 .981 1.292
Housing ...... 45.875 44.411 40.876 39.825 Shelter ...... 37.877 36.959 31.018 28.486 Rent of primary residence ...... 10.428 14.111 5.471 6.623 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 26.149 21.948 24.156 20.966 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 24.788 21.353 22.397 20.505 Fuels and utilities ...... 3.950 4.400 4.874 5.093 Household energy ...... 3.366 3.730 4.022 4.208 Energy services ...... 2.849 3.364 3.420 3.702 Electricity ...... 1.912 2.273 2.361 2.494 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 937 1.091 1.059 1.208 Household furnishings and operations ...... 4.048 3.052 4.984 6.247
Apparel ...... 2.874 2.612 2.506 2.747
Transportation ...... 12.431 13.690 15.601 18.330 Private transportation ...... 10.225 11.673 14.543 17.565 Motor fuel ...... 2.322 3.148 3.326 4.103 Gasoline (all types) ...... 2.281 3.127 3.290 4.011
Medical care ...... 7.845 6.646 9.588 7.465
Recreation ...... 5.519 5.512 5.856 5.438
Education and communication ...... 8.799 8.564 6.982 6.238
Other goods and services ...... 3.148 3.387 3.214 3.344
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 30.396 32.795 39.170 44.842 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 16.887 17.617 23.794 28.229 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 10.215 10.921 12.607 13.656 Durables ...... 6.672 6.696 11.188 14.572 Services ...... 69.604 67.205 60.830 55.158
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 92.155 93.354 90.412 92.535 All items less shelter ...... 62.123 63.041 68.982 71.514 Commodities less food ...... 17.803 18.195 24.776 29.520 Nondurables ...... 23.724 26.099 27.982 30.270 Nondurables less food ...... 11.131 11.499 13.588 14.948 Services less rent of shelter ...... 32.084 30.580 30.129 26.952 Services less medical care services ...... 62.994 61.633 53.143 49.100 Energy ...... 5.688 6.878 7.348 8.312 All items less energy ...... 94.312 93.122 92.652 91.688 All items less food and energy ...... 81.719 78.522 78.258 76.367
See footnotes at end of table. Table 6 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Cross classification of region1 and population size class2, December 2019-Continued
(Percent of all items)
Midwest
Item and group Size class A Size class B/C
CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 14.776 16.072 15.585 16.062 Food ...... 13.612 15.062 14.422 14.871 Food at home ...... 7.559 8.730 7.807 8.036 Food away from home ...... 6.053 6.332 6.614 6.835 Alcoholic beverages ...... 1.164 1.010 1.163 1.191
Housing ...... 41.175 39.497 37.116 35.847 Shelter ...... 32.243 31.041 27.721 25.413 Rent of primary residence ...... 6.671 9.012 5.336 6.812 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 24.198 21.102 20.986 17.595 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 22.310 20.162 19.870 16.984 Fuels and utilities ...... 4.072 4.462 4.628 5.268 Household energy ...... 3.085 3.429 3.566 4.089 Energy services ...... 3.043 3.397 3.417 3.912 Electricity ...... 1.922 2.185 2.405 2.798 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 1.121 1.212 1.012 1.114 Household furnishings and operations ...... 4.861 3.994 4.767 5.166
Apparel ...... 3.088 3.034 3.064 3.396
Transportation ...... 15.753 16.695 17.031 19.215 Private transportation ...... 14.343 15.991 16.015 18.432 Motor fuel ...... 3.121 4.088 3.846 4.720 Gasoline (all types) ...... 3.063 4.001 3.714 4.555
Medical care ...... 9.091 7.457 10.321 9.503
Recreation ...... 5.506 5.942 6.831 6.044
Education and communication ...... 7.176 7.431 6.670 6.254
Other goods and services ...... 3.435 3.872 3.381 3.679
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 37.408 39.618 41.450 45.396 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 22.632 23.546 25.866 29.334 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 11.958 13.176 13.707 14.958 Durables ...... 10.674 10.370 12.158 14.376 Services ...... 62.592 60.382 58.550 54.604
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 90.909 92.543 89.679 90.497 All items less shelter ...... 67.757 68.959 72.279 74.587 Commodities less food ...... 23.796 24.556 27.029 30.525 Nondurables ...... 26.734 29.248 29.292 31.020 Nondurables less food ...... 13.122 14.186 14.870 16.149 Services less rent of shelter ...... 30.720 29.667 31.259 29.610 Services less medical care services ...... 55.184 54.128 50.122 46.734 Energy ...... 6.205 7.517 7.412 8.809 All items less energy ...... 93.795 92.483 92.588 91.191 All items less food and energy ...... 80.182 77.421 78.166 76.320
See footnotes at end of table. Table 6 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Cross classification of region1 and population size class2, December 2019-Continued
(Percent of all items)
South
Item and group Size class A Size class B/C
CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 14.187 16.254 15.075 15.915 Food ...... 13.069 15.385 14.222 15.257 Food at home ...... 6.729 8.564 8.018 8.934 Food away from home ...... 6.340 6.822 6.204 6.323 Alcoholic beverages ...... 1.117 .869 .853 .658
Housing ...... 43.873 42.668 39.784 38.794 Shelter ...... 35.199 33.530 29.981 28.619 Rent of primary residence ...... 8.895 12.763 6.106 8.792 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 25.006 19.962 22.472 18.805 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 23.825 19.522 21.648 18.182 Fuels and utilities ...... 4.188 4.878 5.062 5.663 Household energy ...... 3.166 3.658 3.792 4.263 Energy services ...... 3.110 3.636 3.711 4.200 Electricity ...... 2.578 3.073 3.298 3.798 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 532 .563 .413 .402 Household furnishings and operations ...... 4.486 4.259 4.741 4.513
Apparel ...... 3.055 3.846 2.660 3.090
Transportation ...... 15.704 17.132 17.521 19.030 Private transportation ...... 14.134 16.085 16.757 18.521 Motor fuel ...... 3.224 4.285 3.803 4.759 Gasoline (all types) ...... 3.176 4.229 3.718 4.650
Medical care ...... 8.226 7.114 9.719 8.395
Recreation ...... 5.204 3.969 5.821 4.857
Education and communication ...... 6.849 6.203 6.263 6.539
Other goods and services ...... 2.902 2.814 3.158 3.379
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 35.787 39.790 40.457 43.375 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 21.600 23.536 25.382 27.460 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 11.434 13.292 12.744 14.138 Durables ...... 10.166 10.243 12.638 13.323 Services ...... 64.213 60.210 59.543 56.625
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 91.774 92.886 90.281 91.605 All items less shelter ...... 64.801 66.470 70.019 71.381 Commodities less food ...... 22.718 24.405 26.235 28.118 Nondurables ...... 25.620 29.547 27.819 30.053 Nondurables less food ...... 12.551 14.161 13.597 14.796 Services less rent of shelter ...... 29.397 26.955 30.026 28.414 Services less medical care services ...... 57.472 54.285 51.641 49.635 Energy ...... 6.390 7.943 7.595 9.021 All items less energy ...... 93.610 92.057 92.405 90.979 All items less food and energy ...... 80.541 76.672 78.182 75.722
See footnotes at end of table. Table 6 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of components in the Consumer Price Indexes: Cross classification of region1 and population size class2, December 2019-Continued
(Percent of all items)
West
Item and group Size class A Size class B/C
CPI-U CPI-W CPI-U CPI-W
Expenditure category
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000
Food and beverages ...... 14.823 17.539 14.923 16.348 Food ...... 13.712 16.559 13.892 15.418 Food at home ...... 6.928 8.864 8.153 8.936 Food away from home ...... 6.784 7.695 5.740 6.482 Alcoholic beverages ...... 1.111 .980 1.031 .930
Housing ...... 46.852 46.231 41.564 39.064 Shelter ...... 39.102 38.852 32.618 30.267 Rent of primary residence ...... 11.184 15.465 7.868 11.445 Owners’ equivalent rent of residences ...... 26.789 22.625 23.679 18.086 Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence ...... 25.779 22.068 22.358 17.590 Fuels and utilities ...... 3.497 3.945 4.140 4.234 Household energy ...... 2.278 2.689 2.780 2.852 Energy services ...... 2.247 2.661 2.697 2.824 Electricity ...... 1.759 2.125 2.146 2.331 Utility (piped) gas service ...... 488 .536 .551 .492 Household furnishings and operations ...... 4.254 3.435 4.806 4.563
Apparel ...... 2.751 3.367 2.625 3.006
Transportation ...... 13.639 14.382 16.946 19.190 Private transportation ...... 12.215 13.297 15.795 18.254 Motor fuel ...... 3.573 4.966 3.769 4.418 Gasoline (all types) ...... 3.519 4.922 3.617 4.293
Medical care ...... 6.923 5.402 8.932 7.434
Recreation ...... 5.186 4.411 6.688 6.508
Education and communication ...... 6.847 6.052 5.339 5.579
Other goods and services ...... 2.978 2.616 2.982 2.871
Commodity and service group
All items ...... 100.000 100.000 100.000 100.000 Commodities ...... 33.645 37.732 40.334 44.228 Commodities less food and beverages ...... 18.821 20.193 25.411 27.880 Nondurables less food and beverages ...... 10.851 12.978 12.580 13.631 Durables ...... 7.971 7.215 12.831 14.249 Services ...... 66.355 62.268 59.666 55.772
Special aggregate indexes
All items less medical care ...... 93.077 94.598 91.068 92.566 All items less shelter ...... 60.898 61.148 67.382 69.733 Commodities less food ...... 19.932 21.173 26.442 28.810 Nondurables ...... 25.674 30.517 27.503 29.979 Nondurables less food ...... 11.962 13.958 13.611 14.561 Services less rent of shelter ...... 27.510 23.654 27.365 25.772 Services less medical care services ...... 60.621 57.730 52.697 49.974 Energy ...... 5.851 7.655 6.550 7.270 All items less energy ...... 94.149 92.345 93.450 92.730 All items less food and energy ...... 80.437 75.786 79.558 77.312
1 Regions defined as the four Census regions. See map in Brief Explanation of the CPI. 2 See Table 7 for definitions of size classes by region. Table 7 (2017-2018 Weights). Relative importance of selected areas in the Consumer Price Indexes, December 2019
(Percent of all items)
Area CPI-U CPI-W
U.S. city average ...... 100.000 100.000
Region and area size 1
Northeast ...... 19.778 17.978 Northeast - Size Class A ...... 11.203 9.649 Northeast - Size Class B/C ...... 8.575 8.328 New England 2 ...... 5.395 4.125 Middle Atlantic 2 ...... 14.382 13.852
Midwest ...... 18.927 20.573 Midwest - Size Class A ...... 7.035 7.366 Midwest - Size Class B/C ...... 11.891 13.208 East North Central 2 ...... 13.122 14.703 West North Central 2 ...... 5.805 5.870
South ...... 34.863 35.088 South - Size Class A ...... 13.153 12.373 South - Size Class B/C ...... 21.710 22.715 South Atlantic 2 ...... 19.639 17.936 East South Central 2 ...... 4.546 4.475 West South Central 2 ...... 10.677 12.677
West ...... 26.433 26.361 West - Size Class A ...... 14.334 13.194 West - Size Class B/C ...... 12.098 13.166 Mountain 2 ...... 7.036 6.476 Pacific 2 ...... 19.397 19.885
Size classes
Size Class A ...... 45.726 42.583 Size Class B/C ...... 54.274 57.417
Selected local areas
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA ...... 1.760 1.547 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD 3 ...... 960 .593 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH ...... 2.027 1.501 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI ...... 2.861 3.401 Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX ...... 2.555 3.079
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO ...... 1.353 .886 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI ...... 1.711 1.589 Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX ...... 2.216 2.185 Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA ...... 5.125 5.826 Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL ...... 1.816 1.840
Minneapolis-St.Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI ...... 1.548 1.348 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ...... 7.106 6.527 Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD ...... 2.070 1.621 Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 4 ...... 1.168 .866 Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA 2 ...... 1.085 1.507
St. Louis, MO-IL ...... 916 1.028 San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ...... 2.278 1.208 San Diego-Carlsbad, CA ...... 1.226 1.184 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ...... 2.100 1.717 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL 5 ...... 842 .823
Urban Alaska ...... 192 .180 Urban Hawaii ...... 470 .668 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 3 ...... 3.003 2.308
1 Regions defined as the four Census regions. See map in Brief Explanation of the CPI. 2 Indexes on a December 2017=100 base. 3 1998 - 2017 indexes based on substantially smaller sample. 4 Indexes on a December 2001=100 base. 5 Indexes on a 1987=100 base. Pandemic-Era Inflation Higher Than Official Numbers Sug... https://time.com/5905902/covid-19-inflation/
The Pandemic Is Costing Americans More Money Than Official Numbers Suggest
Emily Barone
The COVID-19 pandemic is impacting the way Americans socialize, work and play— and how we spend money. Since March, virus-containment measures like lockdowns, quarantines and social distancing have altered our purchasing behavior, while the supply and demand of consumer goods—and the value they hold—has also changed.
But the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI), which tracks prices for a set basket of goods and services and helps policymakers measure household spending and inflation, hasn’t been adjusted for the pandemic—it doesn’t take into account that Americans stopped going to the movies but had started hoarding toilet paper, for instance. The CPI gives more weight to goods that make up a greater share of the typical consumer’s spending, but those weights are only assigned once a year. They were last updated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in Dec. 2019, which, of course, was before the pandemic hit.
What happens if we change the basket to accommodate for our altered spending behavior? To help answer that question, Alberto Cavallo, an associate professor of business administration at Harvard Business School, came up with an alternative “COVID CPI” that accounts for pandemic-era changes in consumer behavior. Using credit and debit-card transaction data, Cavallo found that Americans have been buying more food and alcoholic beverages (giving them more weight in his coronavirus-adjusted calculations), while spending less on transportation and recreation (giving them less weight). Supply disruptions, meanwhile, have also caused the prices of some goods to increase.
All things considered, Cavallo found, household costs have increased more during the pandemic than official figures suggest:
“Ultimately, our ability to buy goods and services depends not just on our wages and incomes, but also on the cost of the goods and services that we buy,” Cavallo explains. “The math is simple: if you get a wage increase of 2%, but prices also rise 2%, you have gained nothing.”
Cavallo’s research, originally published in the summer and updated in October, shows that the divergence in inflation rates was particularly stark in the earliest months of the pandemic. The annual inflation rate in May was 0.13%, according to the official CPI, but 0.95% according to his adjusted COVID-19 CPI. The two values have since moved closer, but are not yet in line. In September, the official CPI had a 1.41% inflation rate, while the COVID-19-adjusted index had a 1.9% rate.
Cavallo’s analysis also indicates that poorer households are feeling the effects of these inflation levels more than richer households (in absolute value, low-income households spend less money per food item, for instance, but they spend more on food as a share of total spending). In May, the annual inflation rate for the bottom
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fifth of households by income was 1.12%, but only 0.57% for the top fifth—a difference of 0.55 percentage points. In September, the difference was 0.25 percentage points.
These are large gaps for U.S. inflation levels, and they could have a significant cumulative effect if the pandemic persists. Cavallo cautions, however, that because a household’s bottom line reflects both spending and income, it would be necessary to run a separate analysis that factors in wages and unemployment benefits to know for sure if people are actually worse off. That millions of Americans are currently unemployed, for instance, muddles the analytical waters.
The CPI is an important measure of inflation, similar to the Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index (PCEPI), another key metric that the U.S. Federal Reserve uses to maintain its target inflation rate. (The PCEPI excludes price-volatile food and energy categories, but Cavallo believes that it, too, would show discrepancies if adjusted for pandemic spending.) Knowing that these official indexes do not reflect reality could help guide monetary policy or government economic stimulus programs.
But it’s unlikely that government statistics offices like the BLS will change its index based on Cavallo’s findings. The International Monetary Fund has commented that pandemic-specific adjustments to the index offer a useful perspective, but warns that information on pandemic expenditure patterns is incomplete. Plus, any adjustments would likely be so short lived that they could actually result in less accurate inflation measurements in the longer term.
Even Cavallo himself doesn’t advocate for replacing the current CPI. But he does believe that an alternative index with a more flexible basket of consumer goods offers valuable insight in times of crisis. “No statistic is perfect,” he notes. “And we really need to have a variety of metrics to help policymakers understand what is going on.”
The Coronavirus Brief. Everything you need to know about the global spread of COVID-19
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