WASHINGTON — The average price paid for white pan bread fell 0.1¢ per lb in March, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the US Department of Labor. The price of whole wheat bread, meanwhile, increased, rising 0.8¢ per lb.

The national average retail price of white pan bread was 137.4¢, down 0.1¢ per lb from February but up 11.3¢ from March 2019. On a month-to-month basis, the average price for white pan bread in March increased in two regions — up 3.1¢ in the South and up 0.5¢ in the Midwest — and decreased in two regions — down 7.7¢ in the West and down 1.1¢ in the Northeast.

At 199.4¢ per lb, the national average price for whole wheat bread was up 0.8¢ per lb from February and up 3.2¢ per lb from March 2019.

The national average price of family flour in March was 44.2c per lb, up 0.4¢ from February but down 0.3¢ from March 2019.

The national average price for spaghetti and macaroni in March was 123.8¢ per lb, up 0.3¢ from February and up 0.1¢ from March 2019. Chocolate chip cookies were 363.3¢ per lb, up 8.2¢ from February and up 32.2¢ from March 2019. The national average price of white long-grain rice was 73.3¢ per lb, down 0.1¢ from February and down 2.4¢ from March 2019.