(The Center Square) – Inflation in Denver over the last year outpaced the national rate at 4.7%, according to data released Thursday by the federal government.
The consumer price index for all items went up 3.2% nationally from July 2022 to July 2023, up from 3% in the 12 months ending in June.
The Common Sense Institute, a free enterprise think tank, noted in an analysis of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data that Denver’s rate is down from 5.15%.
“The primary cause of this change was a significant decrease in the price of energy, including oil and gas, which saw its price level decrease by 6.5% since last July,” CSI said. “Despite this strong decrease in energy prices, household fuel and utility prices grew by a whopping 16.45% over the last year.”
“This inverted relation between energy and household fuel and utility prices can largely be attributed to a lag between wholesale energy prices and what consumers pay in their monthly utility bill,” CSI added. “In addition, decreasing inflation does not directly correlate to decreasing prices.”
Colorado’s average household spent $1,167 more on average per month in June and July, according to CSI.
“Except once in June, the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates to combat high inflation each time it’s met since March 2022,” the think tank noted.
