Consumer Price Index

January 2009

On a seasonally adjusted basis the CPI-U decreased 0.7 percent in December following a 1.7 percent decrease in November and a 1 percent decrease in October. The December CPI-U rose 0.1 percent over one year ago. The index for energy fell 8.3 percent in December, following a 17 percent decrease in November and an 8.6 percent decrease in October. The food index declined 0.1 percent in December, the first decline in the food index since April 2006. The index for all items less food and energy was essentially unchanged from November. The 0.1 percent annual increase in December was the smallest annual increase since 1954, when the annual index actually decreased by 0.7 percent.