Consumer Price Index Commodity Classification, 16th Series
Summary of changes to the CPI Commodity Classification (CPICC) to be applied in the 16th series Consumer Price Index (CPI)
Main features
Background
The September quarter 2011 issue of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) will incorporate the main outcomes from the recent major review of the CPI and the latest Household Expenditure Survey (HES) data. This will ensure that the CPI continues to be a reliable measure of price inflation for Australia. It will be published on 26 October 2011. For more information regarding the recent review of the CPI please refer to Outcome of the 16th Series Australian Consumer Price Index Review, Dec 2010 (cat. no. 6469.0).
A detailed list of changes, including tables showing correspondences between the 15th and 16th series commodity classifications can be found in the Data downloads section.
- The new series will be the 16th series since the CPI was first compiled in 1960.
One of the outcomes from the review of the Australian CPI was to update the commodity classification used to categorise the goods and services acquired by households, to ensure it reflected contemporary wording and groupings. In doing so, one of the issues considered was the degree to which the current classification, the CPI commodity classification (CPICC), could be aligned with the United Nations Classification of Individual Consumption according to Purpose (COICOP). To enable greater international comparability of price inflation a review was undertaken to align where possible the CPICC with COICOP.
The major differences between CPICC and COICOP are:
- The CPICC 'Housing' group includes new dwelling purchase by owner–occupiers, compared to COICOP which includes imputed rents for owner–occupier housing costs. The CPICC also includes property rates and charges as an inescapable cost of purchasing a house, where they are excluded from COICOP.
- The CPICC ‘Food and non–alcoholic beverages’ group includes restaurant meals and take away foods. COICOP classifies restaurant meals and take away foods under a separate group ‘Restaurants and hotels’.
- The CPICC 'Recreation' group includes air travel and hotel accommodation. COICOP classifies air travel in the 'Transportation' group and hotel accommodation in the 'Restaurants and hotels' group.
This paper presents the 16th series CPICC. As a result of efforts to more closely align the CPICC with COICOP, there has been considerable re–naming and some re–ordering of the items in the classification. The coverage of household expenditure remains largely the same as the 15th series CPI. However, indirect banking charges will be removed from the headline CPI, but will continue to be published (together with direct fees) as an analytical series.
Updated weighting patterns, the new series identifiers and a template of the new publication and associated tables will be published on 22 September 2011 in the Information Paper: Introduction of the 16th Series Australian Consumer Price Index, Australia, 2011 (cat. no. 6470.0).
The first issue of the 16th series will be for the September quarter 2011 Consumer Price Index, Australia (cat. no. 6401.0) and will be published on 26 October 2011.
Types of changes to the CPI classification
Where changes to the CPI classification are indicated, they are one of the following types:
New series:
- Series that have been formed from splitting and/or combining existing series. (e.g. the 15th series expenditure classes 'Pork' and 'Bacon and Ham' are combined into the 16th series expenditure class ‘Pork’). Where a new series is created from a combination of two or more previously published series a back series will be calculated as far back as possible, based on available data.
- Where a new series is created by splitting an existing series and the ABS does not have the back data readily available, the new series will begin with an index reference base period of June quarter 2011 = 100.0 (e.g. ‘Deposit and loan facilities (direct charges)’, previously part of Deposit and loan facilities).
Series continuing, minor compositional change:
- Series with a small change to composition such as the removal of a small component. (e.g. the stationary component of the 15th series expenditure class ‘Audio, visual and media services’ will move to the 16th series expenditure class 'Newspapers, magazines and stationery'). A back series will be calculated as far back as possible, based on available data.
Series continuing, name change or move in the classification order:
- Series that have been renamed and/or moved in the 16th series classification. The 15th series expenditure class ‘Tea, coffee and food drinks’ has no composition changes and has been renamed ‘Coffee, tea and cocoa’ in the 16th series. The 15th series expenditure class ‘House Purchase’ has been renamed ‘New dwelling purchase by owner–occupiers’ in the 16th series and moved from 4.3.1 to 4.2.1. The series will be linked to the 15th series equivalent.
Discontinued series:
- Series no longer available in the 16th series CPI. (e.g. ‘Deposit and loan facilities’). It will be partly replaced by a new series ‘Deposit and loan facilities (direct charges)’.
Abbreviations
| CPI | Consumer Price Index |
| CPICC | Consumer Price Index Commodity Classification |
| COICOP | Classification of Individual Consumption according to Purpose |
16th series CPI Commodity Classification
| Group | Correspondence with 15th series | Type of change | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subgroup | |||||
| Expenditure class | |||||
| 1 | FOOD AND NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES | Previously Food | (a) | ||
| 1.1 | Bread and cereal products | Previously 1.2 | (a) | ||
| 1.1.1 | Bread | Previously 1.2.1 | (a) | ||
| 1.1.2 | Cakes and biscuits | Previously 1.2.2 | (a) | ||
| 1.1.3 | Breakfast cereals | Previously 1.2.3 | (a) | ||
| 1.1.4 | Other cereal products | Previously 1.2.4 | (a) | ||
| 1.2 | Meat and seafoods | Previously 1.3 | (a) | ||
| 1.2.1 | Beef and veal | Previously 1.3.1 | (a) | ||
| 1.2.2 | Pork | New, combination of 1.3.3 (Pork) and 1.3.5 (Bacon and ham) | (c) | ||
| 1.2.3 | Lamb and goat | Previously 1.3.2 (Lamb and mutton) | (a) | ||
| 1.2.4 | Poultry | Previously 1.3.4 | (a) | ||
| 1.2.5 | Other meats | Previously 1.3.6 (Other fresh and processed meat) | (a) | ||
| 1.2.6 | Fish and other seafood | Previously 1.3.7 | (a) | ||
| 1.3 | Dairy and related products | Previously 1.1 | (a) | ||
| 1.3.1 | Milk | Previously 1.1.1 | (a) | ||
| 1.3.2 | Cheese | Previously 1.1.2 | (a) | ||
| 1.3.3 | Ice cream and other dairy products | Previously 1.1.3 | (a) | ||
| 1.4 | Fruit and vegetables | No change | |||
| 1.4.1 | Fruit | No change | |||
| 1.4.2 | Vegetables | No change | |||
| 1.5 | Food products n.e.c. | New, combination of part 1.7 (Other food) and 1.5.2 (Snacks and confectionery) | (c) | ||
| 1.5.1 | Eggs | Previously 1.7.1 | (a) | ||
| 1.5.2 | Jams, honey and spreads | Previously 1.7.2 (Jams, honey and sandwich spreads) | (a) | ||
| 1.5.3 | Food additives and condiments | Previously 1.7.4 | (a) | ||
| 1.5.4 | Oils and fats | Previously 1.7.5 (Fats and oils) | (a) | ||
| 1.5.5 | Snacks and confectionery | Previously 1.5.2 | (a) | ||
| 1.5.6 | Other food products n.e.c. | Previously 1.7.6 (Food n.e.c.) | (a) | ||
| 1.6 | Non-alcoholic beverages | New, combination of 1.7.3 (Tea, coffee and food drinks) and 1.5.1 (Soft drinks, waters and juices) | (c) | ||
| 1.6.1 | Coffee, tea and cocoa | Previously 1.7.3 (Tea, coffee and food drinks) | (a) | ||
| 1.6.2 | Waters, soft drinks and juices | Previously 1.5.1 (Soft drinks, waters and juices) | (a) | ||
| 1.7 | Meals out and take away foods | Previously 1.6 | (a) | ||
| 1.7.1 | Restaurant meals | Previously 1.6.1 | (a) | ||
| 1.7.2 | Take away and fast foods | Previously 1.6.2 | (a) | ||
| 2 | ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO | No change | |||
| 2.1 | Alcoholic beverages | Previously Alcoholic drinks | (a) | ||
| 2.1.1 | Spirits | Previously 2.1.3 | (a) | ||
| 2.1.2 | Wine | No change | |||
| 2.1.3 | Beer | Previously 2.1.1 | (a) | ||
| 2.2 | Tobacco | No change | |||
| 2.2.1 | Tobacco | No change | |||
| 3 | CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR | No change | |||
| 3.1 | Garments | New, combination of 3.1 (Men's clothing), 3.2 (Women's clothing) and 3.3 (Children's and infants' clothing) | (c) | ||
| 3.1.1 | Garments for men | New, combination of 3.1.1 (Men's outerwear) and 3.1.2 (Men's underwear, nightwear and socks) | (c) | ||
| 3.1.2 | Garments for women | New, combination of 3.2.1 (Women's outerwear) and 3.2.2 (Women's underwear, nightwear and hosiery) | (c) | ||
| 3.1.3 | Garments for infants and children | Previously 3.3 (Children's and infants' clothing) | (a) | ||
| 3.2 | Footwear | Previously 3.4 | (a) | ||
| 3.2.1 | Footwear for men | Previously 3.4.1 (Men's footwear) | (a) | ||
| 3.2.2 | Footwear for women | Previously 3.4.2 (Women's footwear) | (a) | ||
| 3.2.3 | Footwear for infants and children | Previously 3.4.3 (Children's footwear) | (a) | ||
| 3.3 | Accessories and clothing services | Previously 3.5 | (a) | ||
| 3.3.1 | Accessories | Previously 3.5.1 | (a) | ||
| 3.3.2 | Cleaning, repair and hire of clothing and footwear | Previously 3.5.2 (Clothing services and shoe repair) | (a) | ||
| 4 | HOUSING | No change | |||
| 4.1 | Rents | No change | |||
| 4.1.1 | Rents | No change | |||
| 4.2 | New dwelling purchase by owner-occupiers | New subgroup | (c) | ||
| 4.2.1 | New dwelling purchase by owner-occupiers | Previously 4.3.1 (House purchase) | (a) | ||
| 4.3 | Other housing | New, combination of 4.3.3 (House repairs and maintenance) and 4.3.2 (Property rates and charges) | (c) | ||
| 4.3.1 | Maintenance and repair of the dwelling | Previously 4.3.3 (House repairs and maintenance) | (a) | ||
| 4.3.2 | Property rates and charges | No change | |||
| 4.4 | Utilities | Previously 4.2 | (a) | ||
| 4.4.1 | Water and sewerage | Previously 4.2.3 | (a) | ||
| 4.4.2 | Electricity | Previously 4.2.1 | (a) | ||
| 4.4.3 | Gas and other household fuels | Previously 4.2.2 | (a) | ||
| 5 | FURNISHINGS, HOUSEHOLD EQUIPMENT AND SERVICES | Previously Household contents and services | (a) | ||
| 5.1 | Furniture and furnishings | No change | |||
| 5.1.1 | Furniture | No change | |||
| 5.1.2 | Carpets and other floor coverings | New, part 5.1.2 (Floor and window coverings) | (c) | ||
| 5.2 | Household textiles | New subgroup | (c) | ||
| 5.2.1 | Household textiles | New, combination of 5.1.3 (Towels and linen) and part 5.1.2 (Floor and window coverings) | (c) | ||
| 5.3 | Household appliances, utensils and tools | Previously 5.2 | (a) | ||
| 5.3.1 | Major household appliances | Previously 5.2.1 | (a) | ||
| 5.3.2 | Small electric household appliances | Previously 5.2.2 | (a) | ||
| 5.3.3 | Glassware, tableware and household utensils | Previously 5.2.3 | (a) | ||
| 5.3.4 | Tools and equipment for house and garden | Previously 5.2.4 (Tools) | (a) | ||
| 5.4 | Non-durable household products | Previously 5.3 (Household supplies) | (a) | ||
| 5.4.1 | Cleaning and maintenance products | Previously 5.3.1 (Household cleaning agents) | (a) | ||
| 5.4.2 | Personal care products | Previously 5.3.2 (Toiletries and personal care products) | (a) | ||
| 5.4.3 | Other non-durable household products | Previously 5.3.3 (Other household supplies) | (a) | ||
| 5.5 | Domestic and household services | Previously 5.4 (Household services) | (a) | ||
| 5.5.1 | Child care | Previously 5.4.1 | (a) | ||
| 5.5.2 | Hairdressing and personal grooming services | Previously 5.4.2 (Hairdressing and personal care services) | (a) | ||
| 5.5.3 | Other household services | Previously 5.4.3 | (a) | ||
| 6 | HEALTH | No change | |||
| 6.1 | Medical products, appliances and equipment | New, combination of 6.2 (Pharmaceuticals) and part 6.1.2 (Optical services) | (c) | ||
| 6.1.1 | Pharmaceutical products | Part 6.2 (Pharmaceuticals) | (b) | ||
| 6.1.2 | Therapeutic appliances and equipment | New, combination of part 6.2 (Pharmaceuticals) and part 6.1.2 (Optical services) | (c) | ||
| 6.2 | Medical, dental and hospital services | Previously 6.1 (Health services) | (a) | ||
| 6.2.1 | Medical and hospital services | New, combination of 6.1.1 (Hospital and medical services) and part 6.1.2 (Optical services) | (c) | ||
| 6.2.2 | Dental services | Previously 6.1.3 | (a) | ||
| 7 | TRANSPORT | Previously Transportation | (a) | ||
| 7.1 | Private motoring | No change | |||
| 7.1.1 | Motor vehicles | No change | |||
| 7.1.2 | Spare parts and accessories for motor vehicles | Previously 7.1.4 (Motor vehicle parts and accessories) | (a) | ||
| 7.1.3 | Automotive fuel | Previously 7.1.2 | (a) | ||
| 7.1.4 | Maintenance and repair of motor vehicles | Previously 7.1.3 (Motor vehicle repair and servicing) | (a) | ||
| 7.1.5 | Other services in respect of motor vehicles | Previously Other motoring charges | (a) | ||
| 7.2 | Urban transport fares | No change | |||
| 7.2.1 | Urban transport fares | No change | |||
| 8 | COMMUNICATION | No change | |||
| 8.1 | Communication | No change | |||
| 8.1.1 | Postal services | Previously Postal | (a) | ||
| 8.1.2 | Telecommunication equipment and services | Previously Telecommunication | (a) | ||
| 9 | RECREATION AND CULTURE | Previously Recreation | (a) | ||
| 9.1 | Audio, visual and computing equipment and services | Previously Audio, visual and computing | (a) | ||
| 9.1.1 | Audio, visual and computing equipment | No change | |||
| 9.1.2 | Audio, visual and computing media and services | Part 9.1.2 (Audio, visual and computing media and services) | (b) | ||
| 9.2 | Newspapers, books and stationery | New, combination of 9.2 (Books, newspapers and magazines) and part 9.1.2 (Audio, visual and computing media and services) | (c) | ||
| 9.2.1 | Books | No change | |||
| 9.2.2 | Newspapers, magazines and stationery | New, combination of 9.2.2 (Newspapers and magazines) and part 9.1.2 (Audio, visual and computing media and services) | (c) | ||
| 9.3 | Holiday travel and accommodation | Previously 9.4 | (a) | ||
| 9.3.1 | Domestic holiday travel and accommodation | Previously 9.4.1 | (a) | ||
| 9.3.2 | International holiday travel and accommodation | Previously 9.4.2 (Overseas holiday travel and accommodation) | (a) | ||
| 9.4 | Other recreation, sport and culture | Previously 9.3 (Sport and other recreation) | (a) | ||
| 9.4.1 | Equipment for sports, camping and open-air recreation | Previously 9.3.1 (Sports and recreational equipment) | (a) | ||
| 9.4.2 | Games, toys and hobbies | Previously 9.3.2 (Toys, games and hobbies) | (a) | ||
| 9.4.3 | Pets and related products | Previously 9.3.4 (Pets, pet foods and supplies) | (a) | ||
| 9.4.4 | Veterinary and other services for pets | Previously 9.3.5 (Pet services including veterinary) | (a) | ||
| 9.4.5 | Sports participation | Previously 9.3.3 | (a) | ||
| 9.4.6 | Other recreational, sporting and cultural services | Previously 9.3.6 (Other recreational activities) | (a) | ||
| 10 | EDUCATION | No change | |||
| 10.1 | Education | No change | |||
| 10.1.1 | Preschool and primary education | No change | |||
| 10.1.2 | Secondary education | No change | |||
| 10.1.3 | Tertiary education | No change | |||
| 11 | INSURANCE AND FINANCIAL SERVICES | Previously Financial and insurance services | (a) | ||
| 11.1 | Insurance | Previously 11.2 (Insurance services) | (a) | ||
| 11.1.1 | Insurance | Previously 11.2.1 (Insurance services) | (a) | ||
| 11.2 | Financial services | New, combination of part 11.1.1 (Deposit and loan facilities) and 11.1.2 (Other financial services) | (d) | ||
| 11.2.1 | Deposit and loan facilities (direct charges) | New, part 11.1.1 (Deposit and loan facilities) | (d) | ||
| 11.2.2 | Other financial services | Previously 11.1.2 | (a) | ||
a. Series continuing, name change and/or move of series in the classification order.
b. Series continuing, minor compositional change.
c. New series, backcast with components from 15th series.
d. New series, base of June quarter 2011 = 100.0 as no backcast data available.
Data downloads
16th Series CPI commodity classification correspondences
Previous catalogue number
This release previously used catalogue number 6401.0.55.004.