6467.0 - Pensioner and Beneficiary Living Cost Index, Mar 2010  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 17/05/2010   
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MARCH KEY FIGURES

Weighted average of eight capital cities
Dec Qtr 2009 to Mar Qtr 2010 % change
Mar Qtr 2009 to Mar Qtr 2010 % change
Food
1.1
0.3
Alcohol and tobacco
1.4
3.4
Clothing and footwear
-4.2
-1.8
Housing
1.8
7.1
Household contents and services
-1.2
1.5
Health
7.2
4.4
Transportation
1.8
5.3
Communication
-0.1
0.1
Recreation
-1.0
1.6
Education
5.3
5.4
Financial and insurance services
4.2
1.2
All groups
1.2
2.9

PBLCI - All Groups, Quarterly change
Graph: PBLCI - All Groups quarterly change

PBLCI - All Groups, Contribution to quarterly change - March quarter 2010
Graph: PBLCI - All Groups contribution to quarterly change




MARCH KEY POINTS


THE ALL GROUPS PENSIONER AND BENEFICIARY LIVING COST INDEX (PBLCI)
  • rose 1.2% for the March quarter 2010, compared with a rise of 0.6% in the December quarter 2009.
  • showed a larger increase for the March quarter 2010 (+1.2%) than the CPI (+0.9%).
  • rose 2.9% through the year to March quarter 2010, compared to a through the year rise of 2.7% to December quarter 2009.
  • showed the same increase through the year to March quarter 2010 as the CPI (+2.9%).


OVERVIEW OF PBLCI MOVEMENTS
  • The most significant price rises this quarter were for housing (+1.8%) and health (+7.2%).
  • The most significant offsetting price falls this quarter were for clothing and footwear (-4.2%) and household contents and services (-1.2%).


NOTES

FORTHCOMING ISSUES

ISSUE (QUARTER) Release Date
June 2010 16 August 2010
September 2010 15 November 2010
December 2010 14 February 2011
March 2011 16 May 2011



CHANGES IN THIS ISSUE

This issue includes an Appendix, available through the Explanatory Notes tab, showing the weighting pattern used in constructing the Pensioner and Beneficiary Living Cost Index. This weighting pattern was first published as Appendix 3 of Information Paper: Introduction of the Pensioner and Beneficiary Living Cost Index, Australia, 2009 (cat. no. 6466.0). There was an error in that appendix, with the weights for the Postal and Telecommunication components being transposed. An amended version of of the Information paper, which contains the corrected weights is now available in the ABS website <https://www.abs.gov.au>.

Note: There is no impact on published data as the correct weights have been used. Therefore the amendment addresses the presentation of the weights in Appendix 3 only. All published information within this publication and the Information paper (other than the components identified in this note within Appendix 3) is correct.

CHANGES IN PRIOR ISSUES

For the September quarter 2009 and the December quarter 2009 issues, Table 5 (Percentage change in analytical living cost indexes, PBLCI and CPI, Commodity group) has been updated to reflect a correction of the calculation of through the year percentage changes for age pensioner households. The index values for the commodity groups and the all groups age pensioner analytical living cost index are not effected by this correction and remain unchanged. This update addresses the presentation of the through the year percentage changes only for the September quarter and the December quarter 2009.


ROUNDING

Any discrepancies between totals and sums of components in this publication are due to rounding.


INDEX NUMBERS USE REFERENCE BASE OF JUNE QUARTER 2007 = 100.0

To allow comparison of the Pensioner and Beneficiary Living Cost Index with other ABS price indexes, all index numbers in this publication use a reference base of June quarter 2007 = 100.0. However, percentage changes used in this publication for the Consumer Price Index are as published in Consumer Price Index, Australia (cat. no. 6401.0). The percentage changes for Analytical Living Cost Indexes used in this publication are as published in Analytical Living Cost Indexes for Selected Australian Household Types (cat. no. 6463.0).


INQUIRIES

For further information about these and related statistics, contact the National Information and Referral Service on 1300 135 070.


SUMMARY COMMENTARY


THE PENSIONER AND BENEFICIARY LIVING COST INDEX

The Pensioner and Beneficiary Living Cost Index (PBLCI) has been designed to answer the question:

'By how much would after tax money incomes need to change to allow age pensioners and other households whose principal source of income is government benefits to purchase the same quantity of consumer goods and services that they purchased in the base period?'

The PBLCI has been derived by combining the age pensioner Analytical Living Cost Index (ALCI) and the other government transfer recipient ALCI. Living cost indexes are intended to measure the impact of changes in prices on the out-of-pocket expenses incurred by these particular household types.

In the March quarter 2010 the PBLCI increased by 1.2%. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 0.9% over the same period.

Since the PBLCI series began in June quarter 2007 it has risen 10.1%, compared to 8.6% for the CPI. Differences have occurred for a number of reasons that relate to factors that affect the component series used to compile the PBLCI. The inclusion of mortgage interest and consumer credit charges and the different treatments of housing and insurance in the PBLCI result in variations between the PBLCI and the CPI series. The expenditure patterns of age pensioner and other government transfer recipient households differ from those of the overall household sector covered by the CPI. This also contributes to differences in the percentage changes.

For more information on the relationship between the PBLCI, CPI and the ALCIs, see the Explanatory Notes.


MAIN CONTRIBUTORS TO CHANGE

The PBLCI increased 1.2% for the March quarter 2010. Housing (+1.8%) made the greatest contribution to the quarterly rise due to increases in utilities and rents. Health (+7.2%) also saw increases for the quarter as a result of rises in pharmaceuticals. The increase in pharmaceuticals is the result of the cyclical reduction in the proportion of consumers who qualify for subsidised medication under the Pharmaceuticals Benefit Scheme at the start of each calendar year.

The most significant offsets were provided by clothing and footwear (-4.2%) and household contents and services (-1.2%) due to falls in children's and infants' clothing and furniture and furnishings.

The PBLCI (+1.2%) showed a larger increase compared to the CPI (+0.9%) for the quarter. Rises for pharmaceuticals, for which PBLCI households have a significantly higher proportion of expenditure, recorded strong increases for the March quarter. PBLCI households also have a relatively higher proportion of expenditure attributed to food items than the wider CPI population group, especially for fruit and vegetables, which recorded rises for the quarter (driven by fruit price rises, partially offset by falls in vegetable prices).


GRAPHS

Pensioner and Beneficiary Living Cost Index and CPI, All groups - Percentage change from previous quarter
Graph: Pensioner and Benificiary Living Cost Index and CPI, All groups - Percentage change (from previous quarter)


Comparison of PBLCI and CPI Indexes
Graph: Pensioner and Benificiary Living Cost Index and CPI (re-referenced), index numbers


Comparison of PBLCI and Analytical Living Cost Indexes
Graph: Comparison of PBLCI and analytical living cost indexes

Table 1: Pensioner and Beneficiary Living Cost Index, All Groups, Weighted average of eight capital cities - index numbers, percentage change and points change
Percentage Change
Points change
Quarters
Index Numbers(a)
From previous quarter
From corresponding quarter of previous year
From previous quarter
From corresponding quarter of previous year
2007
September
100.9
0.9
. .
0.9
. .
December
101.7
0.8
. .
0.8
. .
2008
March
103.4
1.6
. .
1.7
. .
June
104.7
1.3
4.7
1.3
4.7
September
106.1
1.3
5.2
1.4
5.2
December
106.0
-0.1
4.2
-0.1
4.3
2009
March
107.0
0.9
3.5
1.0
3.6
June
107.1
0.1
2.3
0.1
2.4
September
108.2
1.0
1.9
1.1
2.1
December
108.8
0.6
2.7
0.6
2.8
2010
March
110.1
1.2
2.9
1.3
3.1
. . not applicable
(a) Reference base of index: June quarter 2007 = 100.0.

Table 2: Percentage change in analytical living cost indexes, PBLCI and CPI, by commodity group - December quarter 2009 to March quarter 2010
Commodity group
Age pensioner
Other government transfer recipient
PBLCI
CPI
Food
1.0
1.2
1.1
1.1
Alcohol and tobacco
1.1
1.6
1.4
1.3
Clothing and footwear
-3.8
-4.6
-4.2
-4.3
Housing(a)
1.8
1.6
1.8
1.5
Household contents and services
-1.0
-1.3
-1.2
-1.3
Health
6.9
7.7
7.2
4.7
Transportation
1.7
2.0
1.8
1.3
Communication
-0.1
-0.1
-0.1
-0.1
Recreation
-1.0
-0.9
-1.0
-1.0
Education
5.5
5.3
5.3
5.6
Financial and insurance services(b)
2.6
5.1
4.2
2.0
All groups
1.0
1.2
1.2
0.9
(a) House purchases are included in the CPI but excluded from the population subgroup indexes
(b) Includes interest charges and general insurance. Interest charges are excluded from the CPI and general insurance is calculated on a different basis

Table 3: Points contribution to quarterly change, December quarter 2009 to March quarter 2010 - index points
Commodity group
Age pensioner ALCI(a)
Other government transfer recipient ALCI(a)
PBLCI(b)
CPI(a)
Food
0.25
0.26
0.25
0.18
Alcohol and tobacco
0.10
0.17
0.14
0.10
Clothing and footwear
-0.18
-0.21
-0.20
-0.17
Housing(c)
0.37
0.39
0.38
0.33
Household contents and services
-0.12
-0.14
-0.13
-0.12
Health
0.54
0.26
0.37
0.25
Transportation
0.20
0.21
0.21
0.17
Communication
-0.01
-0.01
0.00
0.00
Recreation
-0.11
-0.10
-0.10
-0.11
Education
0.01
0.11
0.06
0.17
Financial and insurance services(d)
0.15
0.35
0.26
0.20
All groups
1.2
1.3
1.3
1.0
(a) Re-referenced to base of June quarter 2007 = 100.0.
(b) Reference base of index: June quarter 2007 = 100.0.
(c) House purchases are included in the CPI but excluded from the other indexes.
(d) Includes interest charges and general insurance, except for the CPI. Interest charges are excluded from the CPI and general insurance is calculated on a different basis.

Table 4: Contribution to total index, by commodity group - December quarter 2009 to March quarter 2010 - index points
Age pensioner ALCI(a)
Other government transfer recipient ALCI(a)
PBLCI(b)
CPI(a)
Commodity group
Dec qtr 2009
Mar qtr 2010
Dec qtr 2009
Mar qtr 2010
Dec qtr 2009
Mar qtr 2010
Dec qtr 2009
Mar qtr 2010
Food
23.83
24.08
21.39
21.64
22.42
22.67
17.63
17.81
Alcohol and tobacco
7.90
8.00
11.13
11.30
9.77
9.91
7.59
7.69
Clothing and footwear
4.82
4.64
4.57
4.36
4.68
4.48
3.76
3.59
Housing(c)
20.34
20.71
23.30
23.68
22.05
22.43
22.82
23.15
Household contents and services
11.35
11.22
10.41
10.27
10.80
10.67
9.59
9.47
Health
7.81
8.35
3.36
3.62
5.24
5.61
5.21
5.46
Transportation
11.82
12.02
11.36
11.57
11.55
11.76
13.54
13.71
Communication
3.73
3.72
4.36
4.35
4.09
4.09
3.17
3.17
Recreation
11.48
11.37
10.03
9.93
10.64
10.54
11.66
11.55
Education
0.17
0.18
2.05
2.15
1.26
1.32
3.11
3.28
Financial and insurance services(d)
5.72
5.87
6.76
7.11
6.32
6.58
9.49
9.69
All groups
109.0
110.2
108.7
110.0
108.8
110.1
107.6
108.6
(a) Re-referenced to base of June quarter 2007 = 100.0
(b) Reference base of index: June quarter 2007 = 100.0
(c) House purchases are included in the CPI but excluded from the other indexes.
(d) Includes interest charges and general insurance, except for the CPI. Interest charges are excluded from the CPI and general insurance is calculated on a different basis.

Table 5: Percentage change in analytical living cost indexes, PBLCI and CPI, Commodity group, March quarter 2009 to March quarter 2010
Commodity group
Age pensioner
Other government transfer recipient
PBLCI
CPI
Food
0.2
0.4
0.3
0.7
Alcohol and tobacco
3.5
3.4
3.4
3.5
Clothing and footwear
-1.7
-1.8
-1.8
-1.8
Housing(a)
7.5
6.9
7.1
6.1
Household contents and services
1.5
1.5
1.5
1.4
Health
4.5
4.2
4.4
5.1
Transportation
5.0
5.5
5.3
4.1
Communication
0.2
0.1
0.1
0.2
Recreation
1.9
1.4
1.6
1.2
Education
5.6
5.4
5.4
5.7
Financial and insurance services(b)
5.2
-1.0
1.2
2.0
All groups
3.1
2.8
2.9
2.9
(a) House purchases are included in the CPI but excluded from other indexes.
(b) Includes interest charges and general insurance, except for the CPI. Interest charges are excluded from the CPI and general insurance is calculated on a different basis.

Table 6: Points contribution to annual change, March quarter 2009 to March quarter 2010 - index points
Commodity group
Age pensioner ALCI(a)
Other government transfer recipient ALCI(a)
PBLCI(b)
CPI(a)
Food
0.04
0.09
0.07
0.12
Alcohol and tobacco
0.27
0.36
0.33
0.26
Clothing and footwear
-0.09
-0.09
-0.08
-0.07
Housing(c)
1.44
1.52
1.49
1.33
Household contents and services
0.15
0.15
0.15
0.14
Health
0.37
0.14
0.23
0.26
Transportation
0.58
0.60
0.59
0.54
Communication
0.01
0.00
0.01
0.00
Recreation
0.21
0.13
0.17
0.14
Education
0.01
0.11
0.06
0.18
Financial and insurance services(d)
0.30
-0.06
0.08
0.20
All groups
3.3
3.0
3.1
3.1
(a) Re-referenced to base of June quarter 2007 = 100.0
(b) Reference base of index: June quarter 2007 = 100.0
(c) House purchases are included in the CPI but excluded from the other indexes.
(d) Includes interest charges and general insurance, except for the CPI. Interest charges are excluded from the CPI and general insurance is calculated on a different basis.

Table 7: Contribution to total index, Commodity group, March quarter 2009 to March quarter 2010 - index points
Age pensioner ALCI(a)
Other government transfer recipient ALCI(a)
PBLCI(b)
CPI(b)
Commodity group
Mar qtr 2009
Mar qtr 2010
Mar qtr 2009
Mar qtr 2010
Mar qtr 2009
Mar qtr 2010
Mar qtr 2009
Mar qtr 2010
Food
24.04
24.08
21.55
21.64
22.60
22.67
17.69
17.81
Alcohol and tobacco
7.73
8.00
10.94
11.30
9.58
9.91
7.43
7.69
Clothing and footwear
4.73
4.64
4.45
4.36
4.56
4.48
3.66
3.59
Housing(c)
19.27
20.71
22.16
23.68
20.94
22.43
21.82
23.15
Household contents and services
11.07
11.22
10.12
10.27
10.52
10.67
9.33
9.47
Health
7.98
8.35
3.48
3.62
5.38
5.61
5.20
5.46
Transportation
11.44
12.02
10.97
11.57
11.17
11.76
13.17
13.71
Communication
3.71
3.72
4.35
4.35
4.08
4.09
3.17
3.17
Recreation
11.16
11.37
9.80
9.93
10.37
10.54
11.41
11.55
Education
0.17
0.18
2.04
2.15
1.26
1.32
3.10
3.28
Financial and insurance services(d)
5.57
5.87
7.17
7.11
6.50
6.58
9.49
9.69
All groups
106.9
110.2
107.0
110.0
107.0
110.1
105.5
108.6
(a) Re-referenced to base of June quarter 2007 = 100.0.
(b) Reference base of index: June quarter 2007 = 100.0.
(c) House purchases are included in the CPI but excluded from the other indexes.
(d) Includes interest charges and general insurance, except for the CPI. Interest charges are excluded from the CPI and general insurance is calculated on a different basis.