September quarter key statistics
Import price index
- Fell 3.5% this quarter and 5.7% through the year.
Main contributors to the fall were:
- Telecommunications and sound recording equipment (-7.2%),
- Office machines and ADP machines (-8.7%), and
- Articles of apparel and clothing (-8.5%).
Offsetting rises occurred in:
- Petroleum, petroleum products and related materials (+5.2%)
- Gold, non-monetary (+2.3%), and
- Non-ferrous metals (+6.7%).
Export price index
- Fell 5.1% this quarter and 9.9% through the year.
Main contributors to the fall were:
- Gas, natural and manufactured (-39.7%),
- Coal, coke and briquettes (-20.6%), and
- Meat and meat preparations (-6.9%).
Offsetting rises occurred in:
- Metalliferous ores and metal scrap (+9.8%),
- Petroleum, petroleum products and related materials (+37.4%), and
- Gold, non-monetary (+2.3%).
Exchange rate
- The Australian dollar appreciated against the United States dollar.
- This had an downward effect on import and export prices this quarter.
| Jun Qtr 20 to Sep Qtr 20 | Sep Qtr 19 to Sep Qtr 20 | |
|---|---|---|
| % change | % change | |
| Import Price Index all groups | -3.5 | -5.7 |
| Food and live animals | -3.6 | 0.3 |
| Beverages and tobacco | -1.0 | -0.8 |
| Crude materials, inedible, except fuels | 1.5 | -8.6 |
| Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials | 2.9 | -35.9 |
| Animal and vegetable oils, fats and waxes | -13.6 | -0.5 |
| Chemicals and related products, n.e.s. | -2.6 | -3.1 |
| Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material | -3.9 | -1.5 |
| Machinery and transport equipment | -4.5 | -1.1 |
| Miscellaneous manufactured articles | -6.3 | -4.1 |
| Commodities and transactions, n.e.s. | 2.3 | 24.2 |
| Export Price Index all groups | -5.1 | -9.9 |
| Food and live animals | -5.9 | 1.3 |
| Beverages and tobacco | -5.6 | -5.3 |
| Crude materials, inedible, except fuels | 8.3 | 3.7 |
| Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials | -24.6 | -36.7 |
| Animal and vegetable oils, fats and waxes | -10.6 | 2.6 |
| Chemicals and related products, n.e.s. | -2.4 | -6.9 |
| Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material | -1.3 | -11.5 |
| Machinery and transport equipment | -2.3 | -0.9 |
| Miscellaneous manufactured articles | -10.7 | -7.7 |
| Commodities and transactions, n.e.s. | 2.1 | 22.2 |
Use of price indexes in contracts
Price indexes published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) provide summary measures of the movements in various categories of prices over time. They are published primarily for use in Government economic analysis. Price indexes are also often used in contracts by businesses and government to adjust payments and/or charges to take account of changes in categories of prices (Indexation Clauses).
Use of Price Indexes in Contracts sets out a range of issues that should be taken into account by parties considering including an Indexation Clause in a contract using an ABS published price index.
Changes in this issue
The Import Price Index and the Export Price Index have been reweighted for the September quarter 2020. These indexes are annually reweighted each September quarter, using import and export values. A detailed explanation of the reweighting methodology and data sources is available in the Methodology, under the heading Items and weights. The new weighting patterns are provided in the Appendix of this issue. As a consequence of the annual reweighting, the points contribution data for the June quarter 2020 shown in Tables 2, 8 and 17 have been updated from those published in the previous issue of this publication.