News Release Information

20-1932-CHI
Wednesday, October 28, 2020

Gasoline prices averaged $2.067 per gallon in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn area in September 2020, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Jason Palmer noted that area gasoline prices were 65.7 cents lower than a year ago in September when they averaged $2.724 per gallon. Detroit area households paid an average of 18.0 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity in September 2020, 4.0 percent higher than the 17.3 cents paid in September 2019. In September 2020, the average cost of utility (piped) gas was 89.0 cents per therm, comparable to the average price of 86.0 cents per therm a year earlier. (Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year-analysis is used throughout.)

At $2.067 per gallon in September 2020, costs for gasoline in the Detroit area were 19.3 cents lower than the national average of $2.260 per gallon. In September 2016, Detroit area gasoline prices were 13.1 cents higher than the national average, but in the previous three years (2017-2019), local area gasoline prices were comparable to the national average. (See chart 1.)

The 18.0 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) that Detroit area households paid for electricity in September 2020 was 31.4 percent more than the nationwide average cost of 13.7 cents per kWh. In the previous four years (2016-2019) in September, Detroit area electricity costs exceeded the national average, ranging from 13.0 percent to 24.5 percent more. (See chart 2.)

Prices paid by Detroit area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, were 89.0 cents per therm in September 2020, 16.4 percent below the national average of $1.064 per therm. In the previous four years (2016-2019) in September, Detroit area utility (piped) gas costs were lower than the national average, ranging from 15.6 percent to 23.9 percent less. (See chart 3.)

The Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI, core based statistical area covered in this release is comprised of Lapeer, Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, St. Clair, and Wayne Counties in Michigan.

Historical average energy prices for the U.S. and select metropolitan areas are available at www.bls.gov/regions/midwest/data/averageenergyprices_selectedareas_table.htm.

The Consumer Price Index for October 2020 is scheduled to be released Thursday, November 12, 2020.


Technical Note

Average prices are estimated from Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for selected commodity series to support the research and analytic needs of CPI data users. Average prices for electricity, utility (piped) gas, and gasoline are published monthly for the U.S. city average, the 4 regions, 9 divisions, 2 population size classes, 8 region/size-class cross-classifications, and the 23 largest local index areas. For electricity, average prices per kilowatt-hour (kWh) are published. For utility (piped) gas, average prices per therm are published. For gasoline, the average price per gallon is published. Average prices for commonly available grades of gasoline are published as well as the average price across all grades.

All eligible prices are converted to a price per normalized quantity. These prices are then used to estimate a price for a defined fixed quantity. The average price per kilowatt-hour represents the total bill divided by the kilowatt-hour usage. The total bill is the sum of all items applicable to all consumers appearing on an electricity bill including, but not limited to, variable rates per kWh, fixed costs, taxes, surcharges, and credits. This calculation also applies to the average price per therm for utility (piped) gas.

Information from this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200, Federal Relay Services: 800-877-8339.

Year and month Gasoline per gallon Electricity per kWh Utility (piped) gas per therm
Detroit area United States Detroit area United States Detroit area United States

2019

September

$2.724 $2.694 $0.173 $0.139 $0.860 $1.019

October

2.637 2.741 0.171 0.136 0.896 1.041

November

2.541 2.687 - 0.133 0.875 1.058

December

2.574 2.652 0.165 0.133 0.879 1.057

2020

January

2.569 2.631 0.163 0.134 0.886 1.066

February

2.382 2.530 0.164 0.134 0.877 1.050

March

2.117 2.334 0.164 0.134 0.835 1.034

April

1.548 1.946 0.164 0.133 0.831 1.028

May

1.800 1.946 0.172 0.134 0.846 1.037

June

2.083 2.141 0.175 0.137 0.862 1.037

July

2.222 2.243 0.175 0.137 0.857 1.027

August

2.189 2.245 0.175 0.137 0.864 1.031

September

2.067 2.260 0.180 0.137 0.890 1.064

Note: Dash (-) indicates no data available.

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BLS - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics published this content on 28 October 2020 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 28 October 2020 15:19:05 UTC