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CHANGES TO THE CPI FROM SEPTEMBER QUARTER 2011


The September quarter 2011 issue of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) will incorporate the main outcomes from the recent major review of the CPI to ensure that it continues to be a comprehensive and reliable measure of price inflation for Australia. This was a comprehensive review examining CPI concepts, methodologies and data sources. More detailed information can be found in the Information Paper: Outcome of the 16th Series Australian Consumer Price Index Review, Australia, December 2010 (cat. no. 6469.0).

The new series will be the 16th series since the CPI was first compiled in 1960. The 16th series CPI will be introduced for the September quarter 2011. It will be linked to the 15th series CPI at the June quarter 2011, and will be published on 26 October 2011.

The main changes that will be incorporated in the September quarter publication are:

• new household expenditure weights derived from the 2009-10 Household Expenditure Survey (HES) and other data sources;
• the indirectly measured component of the deposit and loan facilities index (i.e. Financial Intermediation Services Indirectly Measured (FISIM)) will be removed from the headline CPI;
• the deposit and loan facilities index will comprise direct fees and charges only and will be renamed "Deposit and loan facilities (direct charges)";
• the CPI commodity classification (CPICC) used to categorise the goods and services in the CPI will be updated to ensure it reflects contemporary wording and groupings. To enable greater international comparability, the classification will be aligned with the United Nations Classification of Individual Consumption according to Purpose (COICOP) where possible. There will be considerable re-naming and some re-ordering of the items in the classification. The coverage of household expenditure will remain largely the same as the 15th series CPI. A detailed list of changes, including tables showing correspondences between the 15th and 16th series commodity classifications can be found in Consumer Price Index Commodity Classification, Australia, 16th Series, 2011 (cat. no. 6401.0.55.004).
• an additional number of analytical measures of inflation will be produced:
  • All Groups CPI (seasonally adjusted), weighted average of eight capital cities;
  • Expenditure class level price indexes (seasonally adjusted), weighted average of eight capital cities;
  • All Groups CPI including FISIM; and
  • All Groups CPI excluding food and energy.
• revised analytical trimmed mean and weighted median measures of inflation using standard ABS seasonal adjustment techniques.

• Household Expenditure Survey, Australia: Summary of Results, 2009-10 (cat. no. 6530.0) will publish household expenditure, income and net worth of households for reference period 2009-10.

• Seasonal Adjustment of Consumer Price Indexes (cat. no. 6401.0.55.003). This publication will outline the new seasonally adjusted measures of inflation.

• Information Paper: Introduction of the 16th Series Australian Consumer Price Index (cat. no. 6470.0) will include the new CPI commodity classification, weighting pattern, publication format and the new structure of the time series spreadsheets that will be published from the September quarter 2011 CPI.
• Consumer Price Index 16th Series Weighting Pattern (cat. no. 6471.0) will be a data cube which will include the CPI weighting pattern, points contributions and capital city weighting information.
• Analytical Living Cost Indexes and Pensioner and Beneficiary Living Cost Index: 16th Series Weighting Patterns (cat. no. 6465.0) will be a data cube which will include the analytical living cost indexes weighting patterns.

• Consumer Price Index, Australia (cat. no. 6401.0) will be the 16th series CPI introduced in respect of the September quarter 2011.
• A Guide to the Consumer Price Index: 16th Series (cat. no. 6440.0) will include a guide to interpreting and using the CPI for general users.
• Consumer Price Index: Concordance with Household Expenditure Classification, Australia (cat. no. 6446.0.55.001) will contain the correspondence between the new CPI commodity classification and the Household Expenditure Survey Classification.
• Consumer Price Index: Historical Weighting Patterns (cat. no. 6431.0) will include the weighting patterns of the CPI from 1960 to 2011.

• Consumer Price Index: Concepts, Sources and Methods, 2011 (cat. no. 6461.0) will contain an update to the methodology, classifications and description of collection and processing procedures including quality adjustment techniques.