CPI - January

The consumer prices index for fruits and vegetables saw its fifth straight monthly decline in January, the Commerce Department reports this morning. Here is the link to the Consumer Price Index for January. From the document:


On a seasonally adjusted basis, the CPI-U increased 0.3 percent in January after declining in each of the three previous months. The energy index climbed 1.7 percent in January, its first increase in six months, but it was still 31.4 percent below its July 2008 peak level. Within energy, the gasoline index rose 6.0 percent in January after a 19.3 percent decline in December. However, some energy components continued to decline; the fuel oil index fell 3.7 percent in January and the index for natural gas declined 3.6 percent. The food index, which rose sharply during the summer and moderated through the fall, increased 0.1 percent in January after being virtually unchanged in December. The food index has risen 5.3 percent over the past year. TheThe food and beverages index increased 0.1 percent in January, the same increase as in December. A 0.3 percent increase in the index for food away from home and a 0.2 percent rise in the alcoholic beverages index more than offset a 0.1 percent decline in the food at home index. The food at home index has risen 5.7 percent over the past year. Within food at home, the indexes for four of the six major grocery store food groups declined in January. The index for fruits and vegetables fell 1.3 percent, its fifth consecutive monthly decline.The index for fresh fruits fell 2.2 percent and the fresh vegetables index declined 1.6 percent. The dairy and related products index, down 1.1 percent in December, fell 0.6 percent in January, with the milk index declining 1.4 percent. Also declining in January were the indexes for meats, poultry, fish and eggs and for nonalcoholic beverages, each down 0.1 percent. The index for cereals and bakery products was virtually unchanged in January, but was still up 11.3 percent over the last year. The index for other food at home rose 0.6 percent in January, the only major grocery store food group index to increase for the month.