ROANOKE VALLEY ECONOMIC INDICATORS

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, March 23, 1993                   TAG: 9303230033
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: B8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short
ROANOKE VALLEY ECONOMIC INDICATORS
Except for occasional blips, such as a slight drop in December, the Consumer Price Index is an indicator that climbs steadily.
At the end of February, it stood at 143.1 compared to 138.6 at the same time last year. That means a basket of goods that cost $138.60 a year ago will take $143.10 out of your wallet today, an increase of 3.2 percent.
The index is based on an average in the base period of 1982-1984. So the same items would have set you back only $100 a decade ago.
Although inflation in recent years is called moderate or low, it's equal to a 43 percent loss of purchasing power in 10 years.
Among other changes in Roanoke Valley economic indicators this week:
The number of building permits remained static over the month and year, but the dollar value dropped in February. Last month's $5.67 million was down 11 percent from January and 12 percent from February of last year.
The number of new cars registered in the Roanoke Valley fell sharply. Only 360 cars were titled here in February, down 11 percent from 406 in January and 21.7 percent from 460 last year.

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB