Economic Assistants Track Prices in San Diego for National Statistics
Joe Loredo walked at a pretty quick pace throughout the Kensington community in San Diego. He bounced back and forth between a small market and a restaurant.
"Oops, they're closed!" he exclaimed as he realized he was early, and the restaurant had yet to open its doors for business.
He is one of 41 economic assistants in California -- and one in five in San Diego County -- who pound the pavement every month for the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
"So what we do is we track prices every month," he said as he hurriedly walked while looking at his tablet for what would be his next stop. "Forty scheduled outlets, in maybe 10 days."
The BLS is in charge of pricing just about every product and service imaginable. From groceries and items on a menu to all forms of energy, clothing, vehicles, medical care, housing, transportation services, haircuts and even mortuaries. You name it, the BLS likely tracks it.
The economic assistants are also spread throughout the county to record prices in different areas and socio-economic neighborhoods. Similarly, they are also scattered throughout the state to include representation in large, medium and small municipalities.
The prices are compared to previous months so that trends can be identified with each product and general overall costs. But the significance of Loredo's work and the rest of the BLS pricing team goes beyond the cost of a meal or a gallon of milk.
According to the BLS, the pricing of goods and services also affects tax brackets, social security payments and funding for school lunch programs. Many residential and commercial rental contracts are based on the national numbers or those of a given area. They can also influence the Federal Reserve banks, which in turn influences rates for mortgages, car loans and credit cards.
This is why Loredo assured NBC 7 that as fast as he walks from one stop to the next, he is just as meticulous when pricing each item on his list.
"It's a very important measure because it affects the life of every individual," he said.
The items and locations on Loredo's list are based on a survey the BLS sends out every year to consumers. They gather and input those answers into their system, which in turn updates the items and locations that will be checked every month.
The BLS reported inflation at 3% in January, marking a seven-month high and a bump from the 2.9% in the previous month.
Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's, noted it's too early to sound the alarms.
"I'd send off a yellow flare," he said. "I wouldn't send off more than one and certainly wouldn't send off a red flare."
Nationally, groceries went up 1.9% in a year and 0.8% since December. It was a bit more in San Diego, which came in at 2% in a year and 0.9% in a month.
BLS reports eggs have reached $4.95 a dozen. That's 53% higher than a year ago and 13.8% more expensive than just last month. The increase is largely due to supply shortages created by a deadly bird flu outbreak. It has pushed some restaurants to add a surcharge to meals that include eggs.
Gas prices in San Diego County continue to take more from consumers' wallets at $4.73 a gallon. It was $4.50 a month ago but still below the $4.76 we paid a year ago.
"Number one, there have been refinery issues. So a couple of refineries in Southern California have shut down, one unplanned. As a result of that, there's just a lack of refined gasoline," explained Alan Gin, an economics professor at the University of San Diego.
Elevated prices for gasoline and diesel can filter through to other areas of the economy due to higher transport costs for distributors.
