The Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers (CPI-U) rose 0.3 percent in July, before seasonal adjustments, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said in its Aug. 16 report. Last month’s level, of 203.5 points, was 4.1 percent higher than the level in July 2005.
The index for urban wage earners and clerical workers (CPI-W) also rose 0.3 percent before seasonal adjustment, to 199.2 points, a 4.3 percent increase from July 2005. The Chained Consumer Price Index for all consumers (C-CPI-U) rose only 0.1 percent before seasonal adjustment, to 117.6 points, or 3.5 percent above its level a year ago.
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After seasonal adjustment, the increases were greater, with the CPI-U advancing 0.4 percent in July, exceeding June’s 0.2-percent pace
Housing rose 0.3 percent in July, up from the 0.2 percent increase the month before. Transportation rose 1.6 percent, as gasoline prices soared to 1.9 percent above their previous peak in May. Medical care rose 0.2 percent, to 4.0 percent above year-ago levels. Recreation and education both rose 0.3 percent. Declines were seen in apparel, which fell 1.2 percent, in its first decline since February, and the index for other goods and services, which fell 0.2 percent after rising 0.6 percent in June.
For the first seven months of the year, the CPI-U rose at seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.8 percent, the bureau said. That’s a faster pace than the 3.4 percent registered for all of 2005. The core CPI-U, excluding volatile food and energy sectors, rose at a seasonally adjusted annual 3.1 percent through July, after rising 2.2 percent last year.
Food increased at a 2.1 percent seasonally adjusted annual rate through July, after rising 2.3 percent in 2005. A decline in the index for fresh vegetables was more than offset by rises in fresh fruits and processed produce.
For the same seven months, the index for energy advanced at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 25.3 percent, after rising 17.1 percent last year. Petroleum costs, which rose at a seasonally adjusted annual 52.8 percent in the first seven months, accounted for most of that hike, the bureau said. Energy services actually fell, at a 2.5 percent annual rate.
The full CPI report, including regional reports, past-year revisions and an explanation of how the indexes are calculated, can be found online at www.bls.gov/cpi.
