February Opens Down
The first week of February showed the same store sales from independent grocers were down 1.78% compared to the same week in 2017. Customer counts were similarly down 1.58%.
This week the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its January Consumer Price Index report, which showed that food at home prices continue to increase, crossing the 1 percent threshold over a 12 month period for the first time since 2015.
Food at home prices increased 0.1 percent in the month of January alone. Individual categories that showed increases were fruits/vegetables (0.5 percent) and cereal/bakery (0.3 percent).
Only one category decreased in price: meat/poultry/fish/eggs (-0.2 percent) and the other three categories were unchanged: dairy, nonalcoholic beverages, and other.
The index for all items increased 0.5 percent in January off strong increases in gasoline and fuel oil. The index for all items has increased 2.1 percent in the past 12 months.