USA Today and the Associated Press report that rising costs of live bird transportation and general price increases have pushed the cost of “The Twelve Days of Christmas” to an all-time high.  For the last 28 years, PNC Wealth Management has released the PNC Christmas Price Index, which is formed using the current prices of the 364 items mentioned in the 12 verses of the traditional carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas.”  The assortment of pipers piping, lords-a-leaping, ladies dancing, maids-a-milking, swans-a-swimming, geese-a-laying, gold rings, calling birds, French hens, turtle doves, and partridges in pear trees costs $24,263, and the total of all repeated items in the twelve verses totals $101,119, a 4.4% from the 2010 Christmas Price Index.

Online orders cost $39,860, a 64% increase from in-store prices.  The difference in price is largely due to an increase in the cost of shipping live birds, according to managing executive of investment Jim Dunigan.  Dunigan summarizes this year’s findings, stating: “the story in general is wages are still a very sluggish part of this economy,” noting that the core rate of increase is much less than the 9.2% increase in 2010.

PNC provides an interactive website to explore price changes in these well-known items (image provided above).