The Christmas Price Index, now in its 40th year, is a tongue-in-cheek take on the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index and is meant to highlight market changes over time while educating consumers about the economy. The holiday index also is running a touch cooler than its traditional counterpart, the Consumer Price Index, which was up 3.2% for the 12 months ended in October and 7.7% this time last year. Pricier doves and live performancesThe Christmas Price Index leans more heavily on discretionary purchases than the broad basket of goods and services that feed into the Consumer Price Index. The core Christmas Price Index rose 3.7% this year, a far more muted increase than last year’s 15.4% gain. “The Christmas Price Index is a very specialty gift basket.

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Persons: inflation’s, ” Amanda Agati, “ We’re, ”, ” Agati, ’, hasn’t, Agati, “, it’s Organizations: Minneapolis CNN, PNC Financial Services, Bureau of Labor Statistics ’, Federal, CNN, Consumer, PNC Locations: Minneapolis, United States