Monthly Consumer Price Index Indicator

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The monthly CPI indicator is a measure of inflation and includes statistics about prices for categories of households expenditure

Reference period
April 2024
Released
29/05/2024

Key statistics

  • The monthly CPI indicator rose 3.6% in the 12 months to April.
  • The most significant price rises were Housing (+4.9%), Food and non-alcoholic beverages (+3.8%), Alcohol and tobacco (+6.5%) and Transport (+4.2%).

Main features

Weighted average of eight capital cities, annual movement
 Feb 23 to Feb 24 % changeMar 23 to Mar 24 % changeApr 23 to Apr 24 % change
All groups monthly CPI3.43.53.6
Food and non-alcoholic beverages3.63.53.8
 Bread and cereal products7.07.35.1
 Meat and seafood-2.0-0.9-0.6
 Dairy and related products4.22.92.7
 Fruit and vegetables-0.5-1.23.5
 Food products n.e.c.4.94.04.2
 Non-alcoholic beverages4.95.52.8
Alcohol and tobacco6.16.16.5
 Alcohol3.62.73.1
 Tobacco10.712.413.0
Clothing and footwear0.80.32.4
 Garments2.31.72.1
Housing4.65.24.9
 Rents7.67.77.5
 New dwelling purchases by owner-occupiers4.95.14.9
 Electricity0.35.24.2
 Gas and other household fuels-2.4-2.9-3.5
Furnishings, household equipment and services-0.30.1-0.8
Health3.94.16.1
Transport3.44.54.2
 Automotive fuel4.18.17.4
Communications1.71.62.0
Recreation and culture0.4-0.6-1.3
 Holiday travel and accommodation-1.3-3.9-6.2
Education5.15.25.2
Insurance and financial services8.48.28.2
CPI analytical series   
 Seasonally adjusted3.63.83.8
 CPI excluding volatile items** and holiday travel3.94.14.1
 Annual Trimmed mean3.94.04.1

** = Volatile items are Fruit and vegetables and Automotive fuel

Monthly overview

The monthly CPI indicator rose 3.6% in the 12 months to April, following a 3.5% rise in the 12 months to March.

The annual movement for the monthly CPI indicator excluding volatile items and holiday travel was 4.1% in April, unchanged from March. This series excludes Fruit and vegetables, Automotive fuel, and Holiday travel and accommodation.

Annual trimmed mean inflation was 4.1% in April, up slightly from 4.0% in March.

*Volatile items are Fruit and vegetables and Automotive fuel

New dwellings and Rents

New dwelling prices rose 4.9% in the 12 months to April, maintaining a consistent annual price growth of around 5% for the past nine months. The increase in New dwelling prices reflects builders continuing to pass on higher costs for labour and materials. 

Rental prices increased 7.5% in the 12 months to April, down from 7.7% in March, which continues to reflect strong demand for rental properties and tight rental markets.

In monthly terms, rental prices rose 0.5% in April, down from a 0.6% rise in March. Commonwealth Rent Assistance (CRA) increased from 20 March 2024, which has the effect of reducing rents for eligible tenants. March included a partial impact of the CRA changes with the remaining impact of the CRA changes reflected in April. Excluding the CRA increases in March and April, Rents would have risen by 0.7% in both months. 

Electricity

Electricity prices rose 4.2% in the 12 months to April, down from a rise of 5.2% to March.

The fall in annual growth is due to the introduction of the second instalment of the Energy Bill Relief Fund rebates for eligible households in Hobart this month. This led to a 1.9% fall in Australia level Electricity prices in monthly terms. 

Energy Bill Relief Fund rebates introduced from July 2023 have moderated the increase in electricity bills for households across Australia.

Excluding the Energy Bill Relief Fund rebates, Electricity prices would have increased 13.9% in the 12 months to April 2024.

The following graph shows the Electricity series including and excluding government electricity rebates.

April 2023, index = 100

  • a) Introduction of the Energy Bill Relief Fund (EBRF) for concession households in NSW, SA, TAS, NT and ACT, and for all households in QLD and WA. Introduction of additional ACT $50 rebate for concession households.
  • b) Introduction of the Energy Bill Relief Fund for concession households in VIC.
  • c) Introduction of the Energy Bill Relief Fund for newly eligible households in NSW, SA, TAS, NT and ACT.
  • d) Introduction of the Energy Bill Relief Fund for newly eligible households in VIC.
  • e) Introduction of the second instalment of the Energy Bill Relief Fund for all households in WA.
  • f) Introduction of the second instalment of Energy Bill Relief Fund for concession household in VIC.
  • g) Introduction of the second instalment of the Energy Bill Relief Fund for concession and newly eligible households in TAS. 

Food and non-alcoholic beverages

Food and non-alcoholic beverage prices rose 3.8% in the 12 months to April, up from a rise of 3.5% to March, mainly due to a rise in Fruit and vegetable prices following an annual fall of 1.2% to March. 

Food products n.e.c. (+4.2%), Bread and cereal products (+5.1%) and Non-alcoholic beverages (+2.8%) also contributed to the rise. Meat and seafood products recorded a partially offsetting fall (-0.6%) due to large price falls for Lamb and goat over the last 12 months (-12.5%). 

Automotive fuel

Automotive fuel prices rose 7.4% in the 12 months to April, down from a rise of 8.1% to March. The rise was driven by higher wholesale fuel prices. 

In monthly terms, Automotive fuel prices rose 2.2% in April, the third consecutive monthly rise. 

Health

Health rose 6.1% in the 12 months to April, up from 4.1% in the 12 months to March. 

Medical and hospital services is the main contributor to the rise, with a 7.3% annual rise in April following a 4.6% rise in March. The added strength this month reflects a rise in health insurance premiums which increased on 1 April. 

Holiday travel and accommodation

Holiday travel and accommodation prices fell 6.2% in the 12 months to April, following a fall of 3.9% to March. 

In monthly terms, Holiday travel and accommodation prices rose 4.6% in April, the first monthly rise since December 2023. The main contributor to the rise was International holiday travel and accommodation reflecting higher demand for international travel over the Easter and school holiday periods. 

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Data explorer for the monthly CPI indicator.

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Detailed monthly data

Monthly Expenditure class data

About the monthly CPI indicator

What is the monthly CPI Indicator?

Introducing monthly indicators of underlying inflation

Articles

Measuring Rents in the CPI 

Using price indexes

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. 

Consistent with existing policy, the ABS does not comment on the use (or otherwise) of the price indexes we publish. However, it should be noted that the monthly CPI indicator may be routinely subject to revision, in contrast to the quarterly CPI which is only revised in exceptional circumstances.

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.

Frequently asked questions

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) specific to the monthly CPI indicator can be found in the Information paper: Introducing a monthly CPI indicator for Australia FAQs 

In addition, the Frequently Asked Questions page has answers to a number of common questions to do with price indexes and the quarterly Consumer Price Index in particular.

Methodology

Scope

The monthly CPI indicator is a general measure of price change for goods and services purchased by Australian households.

Geography

Monthly data is published at the national level, derived as a weighted average of the eight capital cities.

Source

Prices are collected for a range of goods and services (the CPI basket) from a variety of retailers across the eight capital cities.

Collection method

Prices are collected in a range of frequencies including monthly, quarterly, and annually using: 

  • web-scraping
  • online and telephone collections from retailers
  • administrative data, including supermarket scanner data.

Concepts, sources and methods

Information about the data sources and methods used to compile the CPI is contained in the Consumer Price Index: Concepts, Sources and Methods.

History of changes

  • Annual update of CPI weights January 2024. 
  • Partial update of CPI weights July 2023.
  • Monthly Gas series included June 2023.
  • Annual trimmed mean included April 2023.
  • Monthly Electricity included February 2023.
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