Economy: Consumer Price Index (CPI) for January 2020

Thursday, February 13, 2020

Consumer Price Index (CPI) for January 2020

Earlier this morning, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for January 2020:

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Predicted: +0.2%
Actual: +0.1%

Change From 12 Months Previous: +2.5%

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Below is the CPI when food and energy are removed, also known as core CPI:

Predicted: +0.2%
Actual: +0.2%

Change From 12 Months Previous: +2.3%

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The above, yellow-highlighted figures represent the seasonally adjusted, month-to-month change in prices for a specific group of goods and services that consumers buy, and is, therefore, a very important part of the overall inflation picture for the country.

The "predicted" figure is what economists were expecting, while the "actual" is the true or real figure.

General categories that constitute the CPI are:

Healthcare
Housing
Clothing
Communications
Education
Transportation
Food and Beverages
Recreation
Miscellaneous Goods and Services (grooming expenses, etc.)

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From Today's Report:

"...The index for shelter accounted for the largest part of the increase in the seasonally adjusted all items index, with the indexes for food and for medical care services also rising. These increases more than offset a decrease in the gasoline index, which fell 1.6% percent in January. The energy index declined 0.7%, and the major energy component indexes were mixed. The index for food rose 0.2% in January with the indexes for both food at home and food away from home increasing over the month.

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.2% in January after increasing 0.1% in December. Along with the indexes for shelter and medical care, the indexes for apparel, recreation, education, and airline fares all increased in January. The indexes for used cars and trucks, prescription drugs, motor vehicle insurance, and household furnishings and operations were among those to decline..."

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