Prices Rose 1.4 Percent, Dec. To Jan.: Consumer Price Index

DENVER, CO — Prices rose 1.4 percent in the Denver, Aurora and Lakewood areas over the months of December and January, according to a new Consumer Price Index report released by the U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics on Thursday. For the year, these areas — which include Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Clear Creek, Denver, Douglas, Elbert, Gilpin, Jefferson, and Park counties — reported a 7.9 percent increase.

All items except for energy, which declined over the past two months, contributed to this increase, the CPI report said.

For the months of December and January, food prices rose by about 2.5 percent, with food at home increasing by about 2 percent and "food away from home," which includes restaurants and cafeterias, increasing by about 3 percent, according to the report. Over the year, food prices rose by 7.3 percent, with at-home food increasing by 5.5 percent due to increases in prices for meat and poultry.

For the past two months, energy prices declined by 3.2 percent, a reduction that the report attributes to lower gasoline prices. For the year, energy prices increased by nearly 25 percent.

In this time window, prices of used cars and medical care increased by 6 and 6.5 percent, respectively, while tuition, childcare and general school prices dropped by about 2 percent.

The Consumer Price Index measures the average change in prices of goods and services necessary for day-to-day living over a specific period of time.

The March 2022 Consumer Price Index will be released on April 12.