March 20, 2000 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Consumer prices last month

On September 28, 2000, the BLS released revised Consumer Price Indexes for January through August 2000. The article on this page contains revised data. For further information see 'Revisions in January to August 2000 CPI Data' available from the Consumer Price Index Homepage./cpi/cpirev01.htm

On a seasonally adjusted basis, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) rose 0.5 percent in February, following increases of 0.2 percent in each of the preceding four months. For the 12-month period ended in February, the unadjusted CPI-U increased 3.2 percent.

Percent change from 12 months ago, Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, not seasonally adjusted, February 1991-February 2000
[Chart data—TXT]

The food index, which declined 0.1 percent in January, increased 0.4 percent in February, reflecting in part a sharp jump in meat prices. The energy index rose 4.6 percent, its largest advance since a 6.0 percent rise in April 1999. The index for petroleum-based energy increased 8.0 percent and the index for energy services rose 1.1 percent.

Excluding food and energy, the CPI-U rose 0.2 percent in February, the same as in January.

These data are a product of the BLS Consumer Price Index program.

Of interest

Spotlight on Statistics: National Hispanic Heritage Month

In this Spotlight, we take a look at the Hispanic labor force—including labor force participation, employment and unemployment, educational attainment, geographic location, country of birth, earnings, consumer expenditures, time use, workplace injuries, and employment projections. . Read more »