Consumer Price Index, Australia

• 8.4% rise in tobacco is the main contributor due to the annual tobacco excise tax increase of 12.5% and the biannual increase based on Average Weekly Ordinary Time Earnings (AWOTE) indexation applied on 1 September 2019.
• Over the last twelve months the group rose 6.5%. The main contributor is tobacco (+14.0%).
• In seasonally adjusted terms, the group rose 1.3%. The main contributor is tobacco (+3.1%).

• 6.8% rise in fruit, 1.0% rise in meals out and takeaway foods and 2.9% rise in beef and veal are the main contributors. Drought conditions are impacting the prices for a range of fresh produce including grapes, melons, onions, potatoes, eggs, rice and prawns. Strength in meat prices continues due to the combined effects of high global demand resulting from the spread of African Swine Fever in Asia and ongoing drought conditions in Australia.
• 2.2% fall in waters, soft drinks and juices partially offset the rise.
• Over the last twelve months the group rose 2.6%. The main contributor is meals out and takeaway foods (+2.1%) due to rising input costs.
• In seasonally adjusted terms, the group rose 0.8% this quarter. The main contributor is and meals out and takeaway foods (+1.0%).

• 4.4% rise in automotive fuel is the main contributor as higher world oil prices flow through to consumers . Automotive fuel rose in September (+2.7%) and October (+4.0%), fell in November (-2.1%), then rose again in December (+1.0%).
• Over the last twelve months the group rose 2.8%. The main contributor is automotive fuel (+2.9%).
• In seasonally adjusted terms, the group rose 1.8% this quarter. The main contributor is automotive fuel (+4.4%).

The following graph shows the pattern of the average daily prices for unleaded petrol for the eight capital cities over the last fifteen months.

• 7.3% rise in domestic holiday, travel and accommodation is the main contributor as a result of price rises in the lead up to the peak summer holiday period.
• 2.9% fall in international holiday, travel and accommodation is the main offset to the group due to the off-peak tourist seasons in Europe and America.
• Over the last twelve months the group rose 1.5%. The main contributor is international holiday, travel and accommodation (+3.6%).
• In seasonally adjusted terms, the group rose by 0.1% this quarter. The main contributor is domestic holiday, travel and accommodation (+1.7%).

• 0.4% rise in other financial services is the main contributor.
• Over the last twelve months the group rose 0.7%. The main contributor is other financial services (+0.8%).
• In seasonally adjusted terms, the group rose 0.3% this quarter.

• 3.7% fall in household textiles and 1.4% fall in furniture are the main contributors due to sales events throughout the quarter.
• 1.5% rise in child care partially offset the fall.
• Over the last twelve months the group rose 1.1%. The main contributor is child care (+7.2%).
• In seasonally adjusted terms, the group rose 0.2% this quarter. The main contributor is child care (+1.9%).

• 0.9% fall in telecommunication equipment and services is the main contributor
• Over the last twelve months the group fell -3.8%. The main contributor is telecommunication equipment and services (-3.9%).
• The communication group is not seasonally adjusted.

• 1.3% fall in pharmaceutical products is the main contributor due to the cyclical effect of a greater proportion of consumers who qualify for subsidies under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), reducing out-of-pocket expenses.
• Over the last twelve months the group rose 3.2%. The main contributor is medical and hospital services (+3.6%).
• In seasonally adjusted terms, the group rose 0.9% this quarter. The main contributor is medical and hospital services (+1.0%).

• 0.4% rise in new dwelling purchase by owner-occupiers is the main contributor.
• New dwelling purchase by owner-occupiers recorded modest growth, after three consecutive quarterly price falls. Increases to base prices and reductions in the value of promotional offers for project homes contributed to the rise.
• The fall in utilities (-0.6%) is mainly due to the switch to off-peak pricing in Melbourne for gas and other household fuels. The introduction of new market offers with lower supply and usage charges for both gas and other household fuels (-1.9%) and electricity (-0.7%) also contributed to the fall.
• A rise in water and sewerage (+0.6) partially offset the fall in utilities. Reduced dam levels in Sydney saw the desalination plant become operational, resulting in increased water usage charges.
• Over the last twelve months the group rose 0.2%.
• In seasonally adjusted terms, the group rose 0.2% this quarter. The main contributor is new dwelling purchase by owner-occupiers (+0.4%).

• 2.5% fall in garments for women is the main contributor due to sales events throughout the quarter.
• Over the last twelve months the group rose 1.4%. The main contributors are accessories (+2.7%) and footwear (+3.4%).
• In seasonally adjusted terms, the group fell 0.2% this quarter. The main contributor is garments for women (-1.6%).

• Over the last twelve months the group rose +2.9%. The main contributors are secondary education (+4.2%) and preschool and primary education (+2.9%).
• In seasonally adjusted terms, the group rose 0.7% this quarter. The main contributor is secondary education (+1.0%).

Tradables (+0.2% quarter, +1.7% annual):

• Tradable goods component rose 0.5% mainly due to automotive fuel (+4.4%) and fruit (+6.8%).
• Tradable services component fell 2.8% mainly due to international holiday, travel and accommodation (-2.9%).

Non-tradables (+1.0% quarter, +2.0% annual):

• Non-tradable goods component rose 1.3%, mainly due to tobacco (+8.4%).
• Non-tradable services component rose 0.8% mainly due to domestic holiday, travel and accommodation (+7.3%).

In seasonally adjusted terms, the tradables component of the All groups CPI rose 0.4% and the non-tradables component rose 0.7%.

In the December 2019 quarter:

• All groups CPI seasonally adjusted rose 0.6% for the quarter and 1.8% for the year.
• Trimmed mean rose 0.4%, following a rise of 0.4% in the September 2019 quarter.
• Over the twelve months to the December 2019 quarter, the trimmed mean rose 1.6%, following a rise of 1.6% over the twelve months to the September 2019 quarter.
• Weighted median rose 0.4%, following a rise of 0.4% in the September 2019 quarter.
• Over the twelve months, the weighted median rose 1.3%, following a rise of 1.3% over the twelve months to the September 2019 quarter.
   

A detailed explanation of the seasonal adjustment of the All Groups CPI and calculation of the trimmed mean and weighted median measures is available in Information Paper: Seasonal Adjustment of Consumer Price Indexes, 2011 (cat. no. 6401.0.55.003) available on the ABS website. Revisions to the seasonally adjusted estimates can be the result of the application of concurrent seasonal adjustment, described in the Methodology page.

• Tobacco (+8.1%)
• Domestic holiday, travel and accommodation (+6.0%)
• Automotive fuel (+5.4%).

The rise was partially offset by:

• International holiday, travel and accommodation (-2.9%)
• New dwelling purchase by owner-occupiers (-0.7%); driven by increases in promotional offer values.
• Motor vehicles (-1.5%)
• Housing related expenses fell 0.3% this quarter, driven by falls in new dwelling purchase by owner-occupiers (-0.7%), rents (-0.3%), electricity (-0.6%) and gas and other household fuels (-1.2%).

• Tobacco (+8.3%)
• Domestic holiday, travel and accommodation (+9.8%)
• Automotive fuel (+4.5%)
• New dwelling purchase by owner-occupiers (+1.5%) with increases in base prices and reductions in the value of promotional offers.

The rise was partially offset by:

• International holiday, travel and accommodation (-2.7%)
• Gas and other household fuels (-3.3%); driven by the switch to off-peak pricing for gas.

• Tobacco (+8.8%)
• Automotive fuel (+4.8%)
• Domestic holiday, travel and accommodation (+3.7%)

The rise was partially offset by:

• International holiday, travel and accommodation (-2.4%)
• Motor vehicles (-1.3%).

• Tobacco (+8.5%)
• Domestic holiday, travel and accommodation (+10.6%)
• Automotive fuel (+3.3%).

The rise was partially offset by:

• International holiday, travel and accommodation (-3.2%)
• Electricity (-1.5%) with the introduction of new market offers with lower supply and usage charges this quarter.

• Tobacco (+8.7%)
• Domestic holiday, travel and accommodation (+7.4%)
• Automotive fuel (+3.1%).

The rise was partially offset by:

• International holiday, travel and accommodation (-3.7%)
• Garments for women (-4.0%)
• Wine (-2.7%).

• Domestic holiday, travel and accommodation (+18.7%); due to increased tourist demand.
• Tobacco (+8.1%)
• Automotive fuel (+2.4%)
• New dwelling purchase by owner-occupiers (+1.7%); due to strong demand with builders passing on increased input costs.

The rise was partially offset by:

• International holiday, travel and accommodation (-4.0%)
• Garments for women (-3.9%).

• Tobacco (+8.8%)
• Automotive fuel (+2.3%)
• Fruits (+7.5%).

The rise was partially offset by:

• Domestic holiday, travel and accommodation (-11.0%); which is the only recorded fall across all capital cities due to reduced demand during the wet season.
• Rents (-1.5%)
• International holiday, travel and accommodation (-2.6%).

• Domestic holiday, travel and accommodation (+6.4%)
• Tobacco (+8.4%)
• Automotive fuel (+3.1%).

The rise was partially offset by:

• International holiday, travel and accommodation (-2.6%)
• Garments for women (-4.7%).

Further analysis is available in the Main contributors to change commentary.

An update on the Annual Re-weighting of the Australian CPI and Living Cost Indexes, August 2018 (cat. no. 6401.0.60.006)

Towards an Australian Monthly CPI, June 2018 (Chief Economist Series)

An Implementation Plan to Annually Re-weight the Australian CPI, June 2017 (cat. no. 6401.0.60.005)

An Implementation Plan to Maximise the Use of Transactions Data in the CPI, June 2017 (cat. no. 6401.0.60.004)

Making Greater Use of Transactions Data to compile the Consumer Price Index, November 2016 (cat. no. 6401.0.60.003)

Increasing the Frequency of CPI Expenditure Class Weight Updates, July 2016 (cat. no. 6401.0.60.002)

Enhancing the Australian CPI: A roadmap, August 2015 (cat. no. 6401.0.60.001)

The Use of Transactions Data to Compile the Australian Consumer Price Index, September quarter 2013 (cat. no. 6401.0)

Quality Change in the Australian CPI, December 2019 (cat. no. 6470.0.55.002)

Underlying Inflation Measures: Explaining the Trimmed Mean and Weighted Median, April 2019 (Chief Economist Series)

70 Years of Inflation in Australia, October 2018 (Chief Economist Series)

70 years of the Australian Consumer Price Index, September quarter 2018 (cat. no. 6401.0)

The Australian CPI: A Contemporary Measure of Household Inflation, September quarter 2017 (cat. no. 6401.0)

The average size and proportion of price changes in the CPI, September quarter 2017 (cat. no. 6401.0)

What role does housing play in the Consumer Price Index and Selected Living Cost Indexes?, March quarter 2017 (cat. no. 6467.0)

Potential Impact of Tropical Cyclone Debbie on the CPI, March quarter 2017 (cat. no. 6401.0)

Consumer spending patterns and price change: How does electricity compare?, March quarter 2017 (cat. no. 6401.0)

Measuring Price Change of Attached Dwellings in the CPI, December quarter 2016 (cat. no. 6401.0)

Review of the Consumer Price Index International Trade Exposure Series, September quarter 2016 (cat. no. 6401.0)

Australian Dietary Guidelines Price Indexes, December quarter 2015 (cat. no. 6401.0)

Information Paper: Introduction of the Consumer Price Index Weight Update, December 2019  (cat no. 6470.0.55.002 )

Consumer Price Index: Correspondence with 2015-16 Household Expenditure Classification 2017, January 2018 (cat. no. 6446.0.55.001)

Consumer Price Index: Historical Weighting Patterns, 1948-2017, January 2018 (cat. no. 6431.0)

A Guide to the Consumer Price Index: 17th Series 2017, January 2018 (cat. no. 6440.0)

Consumer Price Index: 17th Series Weighting Pattern, November 2017 (cat. no. 6473.0)

Information Paper: Introduction of the 17th Series Australian Consumer Price Index, November 2017 (cat. no. 6470.0.55.001)

13/02/2020 Note: This release incorporates updated values following the release of the December 2019 quarter on 29 January 2020. Amendments have been made for the period June 2000 to June 2008 to the following series:

Tertiary education, seasonally adjusted
Education, seasonally adjusted
Tertiary education, Combined Seasonal Adjustment Factors

Release elements replaced are:

• 'Table 13. CPI: Group, expenditure class and selected analytical series index numbers, seasonally adjusted, weighted average of eight capital cities'; and
• 'Table 14. CPI: Expenditure class, combined seasonal adjustment factors, weighted average of eight capital cities'.