Abstract #301054

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JSM 2002 Abstract #301054
Activity Number: 282
Type: Contributed
Date/Time: Wednesday, August 14, 2002 : 8:30 AM to 10:20 AM
Sponsor: Section on Government Statistics*
Abstract - #301054
Title: Expenditure Weight Update for the Consumer Price Index (CPI)
Author(s): Cassandra Wirth*+ and Charles Mason
Affiliation(s): U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Address: 2 Massachusetts Ave, NE, Room 3615, Washington, District of Columbia, 20212,
Keywords: CPI ; expenditure weights
Abstract:

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) has historically been revised about every ten years. Recently, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) made a move to update the expenditure weights every two years. The publication of January 2002 data will reflect updated expenditure weights. These weights are used to reflect consumers' spending patterns for the market basket used in calculating the CPI. Since consumers' spending habits change over time, the more frequent updates to the expenditure weights should lead to an index that more closely approximates cost-of-living changes. This paper examines the changes in the expenditure weights that were introduced into the CPI in January 2002 and summarizes the effect that they had on the level of reported inflation during the six months since their introduction.

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Revised March 2002