Overview of BLS Statistics on Inflation and Consumer Spending

Inflation can be defined as the overall general upward price movement of goods and services in an economy. BLS has various indexes that measure different aspects of inflation.

BLS statistics related to inflation:

Consumer Price Index

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures inflation as experienced by consumers in their day-to-day living expenses. (It is sometimes referred to as the retail price index.) There are separate indexes for two groups or populations of consumers:

• The CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) is the index most often reported by the national media.
• The CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) is the index most often used for wage escalation agreements.

The CPI inflation calculator allows customers to calculate the value of current dollars in an earlier period, or to calculate the current value of dollar amounts from years ago.

Consumer price indexes often are used to escalate or adjust payments for rents, wages, alimony, child support and other obligations that may be affected by changes in the cost of living. There is a fact sheet explaining how to use the CPI for escalating contracts.

A new price index called the Chained Consumer Price Index (C-CPI-U) is now available. This new measure is designed to be a closer approximation to a "cost-of-living" index than the CPI-U or CPI-W.

Producer Price Indexes

The Producer Price Indexes (PPIs) are a family of indexes that measure changes in the selling prices received by domestic producers of goods and services. They formerly were referred to as Wholesale Price Indexes. When the PPIs are released, the news media will most often report the percentage change in the index for Finished Goods.

Producer Price Indexes also can be used in escalation contracts. A fact sheet explaining the details is available.

Import and Export Prices

The International Price Program measures change in the prices of imports and exports of nonmilitary goods between the United States and the rest of the world.

Consumer Spending

The Consumer Expenditure Survey measures the spending habits of U.S. consumers and includes data on their expenditures, income, and characteristics.

Last Modified Date: November 4, 2002

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