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CONSUMER PRICE INDEX – DECEMBER 2009
On a seasonally adjusted basis, the December Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U)
rose 0.1 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the index
increased 2.7 percent before seasonal adjustment.
The seasonally adjusted increase in the all items index was broad based, with the indexes for food,
energy, and all items less food and energy all posting modest increases. Within the latter group, a sharp
rise in the index for used cars and trucks was the largest contributor to the 0.1 percent increase, while the
indexes for airline fares, apparel, and lodging away from home rose as well. In contrast, the indexes for
rent and owners’ equivalent rent were unchanged and the index for new vehicles declined.
Grocery store food indexes showed broad-based increases, leading to the food index rising 0.2 percent,
its largest one-month advance in over a year. The energy index also rose 0.2 percent; this was its
smallest increase in five months. The indexes for fuel oil and gasoline rose, but the electricity index was
unchanged and the natural gas index declined.
-0.8
-0.6
-0.4
-0.2
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
Dec'08
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec'09
Chart 1. One-month percent change in CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), seasonally adjusted, Dec. 2008 - Dec. 2009
Percent change
-0.8
0.3
0.4
-0.1
0.0
0.1
0.7
0.0
0.4
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.1
- 2 -
Chart 2. 12-month percent change in CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), not seasonally adjusted, Dec. 2008 - Dec. 2009
Percent change
All items
All items less food and energy
-3
-2
-1
0
1
2
3
Dec'08
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
N