WASHINGTON — The average price paid for white pan bread again finished higher while whole wheat bread again finished lower in January, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor.

The national average retail price of white pan bread was 142.3c, up 0.3c per lb from December and up 2.2c from January 2011. The gain followed an increase of 2.1c per lb in December. On a month-to-month basis, the average price for white pan bread in January rose in two regions — up 9.6c in the West and up 0.3c in the Northeast — and fell in two regions — down 3.1c per lb in the Midwest and down 1.4c in the South.

At 198.4c per lb, the national average price for whole wheat bread was down 8.9c per lb from December but up 10c per lb from January 2011. It was the sharpest month-over-month decrease for whole wheat since falling 12.8c per lb in October 2005.

The national average price of family flour in January was 52.8c per lb, up 1.8c from December and up 5.1c from January 2011. The gain ended three straight months of lower prices. The price was up in all four regions.

The national average price for spaghetti and macaroni in January was 131.7c per lb, up 1.1c from December and up 10.8c from January 2011. Chocolate chip cookies were 364c per lb, down 4.2c from December but up 34.2c from January 2011. The national average price of white long-grain rice was 73.9c per lb, up 1c from December but down 0.3c from January 2011.