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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

March 2024

Released

24/04/2024

View all releases

Key statistics

The monthly CPI indicator rose 3.5% in the 12 months to March.
The most significant price rises were Housing (+5.2%), Food and non-alcoholic beverages (+3.5%), Transport (+4.5%) and Alcohol and tobacco (+6.1%).

What's new this month

Design of a complete monthly CPI

At the end of 2023, the ABS undertook a public consultation on the proposed complete monthly CPI publication design. The public consultation sought formal submissions on this proposed design covering key areas such as release timing, data requirements, publication specifics, and methodologies. A summary of submissions and the complete monthly CPI design are available on the ‘We asked, You said, We did’ page of the Consultation Hub.

Private rent inflation: capital cities vs regions

The ABS has published an article called Private rent inflation: capital cities vs regions. This article updates some of the information about the private Australian rental market previously published in April 2023 in the New insights into the rental market information paper.

Main features

Weighted average of eight capital cities, annual movement
		Jan 23 to Jan 24 % change	Feb 23 to Feb 24 % change	Mar 23 to Mar 24 % change
All groups monthly CPI		3.4	3.4	3.5
Food and non-alcoholic beverages		4.4	3.6	3.5
	Bread and cereal products	7.4	7.0	7.3
	Meat and seafood	-2.0	-2.0	-0.9
	Dairy and related products	5.0	4.2	2.9
	Fruit and vegetables	1.6	-0.5	-1.2
	Food products n.e.c.	6.9	4.9	4.0
	Non-alcoholic beverages	5.7	4.9	5.5
Alcohol and tobacco		6.7	6.1	6.1
	Alcohol	4.5	3.6	2.7
	Tobacco	10.7	10.7	12.4
Clothing and footwear		0.4	0.8	0.3
	Garments	1.9	2.3	1.7
Housing		4.6	4.6	5.2
	Rents	7.4	7.6	7.7
	New dwelling purchases by owner-occupiers	4.8	4.9	5.1
	Electricity	0.8	0.3	5.2
	Gas and other household fuels	-1.4	-2.4	-2.9
Furnishings, household equipment and services		0.3	-0.3	0.1
Health		3.9	3.9	4.1
Transport		3.0	3.4	4.5
	Automotive fuel	3.1	4.1	8.1
Communications		2.0	1.7	1.6
Recreation and culture		-1.7	0.4	-0.6
	Holiday travel and accommodation	-7.1	-1.3	-3.9
Education		4.7	5.1	5.2
Insurance and financial services		8.2	8.4	8.2
CPI analytical series
	Seasonally adjusted	3.6	3.7	3.8
	CPI excluding volatile items** and holiday travel	4.1	3.9	4.1
	Annual Trimmed mean	3.8	3.9	4.0

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

Monthly overview

The monthly CPI indicator rose 3.5% in the 12 months to March, following a 3.4% rise in the 12 months to February.

The annual movement for the monthly CPI indicator excluding volatile items and holiday travel was 4.1% in March, up from the rise of 3.9% in February. This series excludes Fruit and vegetables, Automotive fuel, and Holiday travel and accommodation.

Annual trimmed mean inflation was 4.0% in March, up slightly from 3.9% in February.

Monthly CPI indicator, Australia, annual movement (%)
	Monthly CPI indicator (%)	Annual Trimmed mean (%)	Monthly CPI excluding volatile items* & holiday travel (%)
Mar-20	2.1	1.8	2.4
Apr-20	0.1	1.3	1.2
May-20	-0.2	1.3	0.6
Jun-20	-0.1	1.2	0.4
Jul-20	0.8	1.0	1.4
Aug-20	1.1	1.3	1.3
Sep-20	0.4	1.0	1.4
Oct-20	0.5	1.3	1.9
Nov-20	1.1	1.5	2.1
Dec-20	0.3	1.3	1.8
Jan-21	0.4	1.4	1.9
Feb-21	1.1	1.1	1.5
Mar-21	0.8	0.9	1.1
Apr-21	2.5	0.9	2.1
May-21	3.3	1.5	3.0
Jun-21	3.5	1.5	3.4
Jul-21	2.1	1.6	2.1
Aug-21	2.5	2.0	2.6
Sep-21	3.1	2.3	2.5
Oct-21	3.0	2.3	2.0
Nov-21	3.2	2.3	2.2
Dec-21	3.5	2.7	2.9
Jan-22	4.0	3.1	3.1
Feb-22	4.9	3.4	4.1
Mar-22	5.7	3.7	4.4
Apr-22	5.5	4.0	4.9
May-22	6.1	4.3	5.2
Jun-22	6.8	4.5	5.5
Jul-22	7.2	5.4	6.2
Aug-22	7.2	5.9	6.6
Sep-22	7.2	6.1	6.6
Oct-22	7.0	6.1	7.0
Nov-22	7.4	6.6	7.1
Dec-22	8.4	7.2	7.2
Jan-23	7.5	6.5	6.9
Feb-23	6.8	6.5	6.8
Mar-23	6.3	6.5	6.9
Apr-23	6.7	6.7	6.5
May-23	5.5	6.1	6.4
Jun-23	5.4	6.0	6.1
Jul-23	4.9	5.6	5.8
Aug-23	5.2	5.6	5.5
Sep-23	5.6	5.4	5.5
Oct-23	4.9	5.3	5.1
Nov-23	4.3	4.6	4.8
Dec-23	3.4	4.0	4.2
Jan-24	3.4	3.8	4.1
Feb-24	3.4	3.9	3.9
Mar-24	3.5	4.0	4.1

Monthly CPI indicator, Australia, annual movement (%)

["","Monthly CPI indicator","Annual Trimmed mean","Monthly CPI excluding volatile items* & holiday travel"]

[["Mar-20","Apr-20","May-20","Jun-20","Jul-20","Aug-20","Sep-20","Oct-20","Nov-20","Dec-20","Jan-21","Feb-21","Mar-21","Apr-21","May-21","Jun-21","Jul-21","Aug-21","Sep-21","Oct-21","Nov-21","Dec-21","Jan-22","Feb-22","Mar-22","Apr-22","May-22","Jun-22","Jul-22","Aug-22","Sep-22","Oct-22","Nov-22","Dec-22","Jan-23","Feb-23","Mar-23","Apr-23","May-23","Jun-23","Jul-23","Aug-23","Sep-23","Oct-23","Nov-23","Dec-23","Jan-24","Feb-24","Mar-24"],[[2.1000000000000001],[0.10000000000000001],[-0.20000000000000001],[-0.10000000000000001],[0.80000000000000004],[1.1000000000000001],[0.40000000000000002],[0.5],[1.1000000000000001],[0.29999999999999999],[0.40000000000000002],[1.1000000000000001],[0.80000000000000004],[2.5],[3.2999999999999998],[3.5],[2.1000000000000001],[2.5],[3.1000000000000001],[3],[3.2000000000000002],[3.5],[4],[4.9000000000000004],[5.7000000000000002],[5.5],[6.0999999999999996],[6.7999999999999998],[7.2000000000000002],[7.2000000000000002],[7.2000000000000002],[7],[7.4000000000000004],[8.4000000000000004],[7.5],[6.7999999999999998],[6.2999999999999998],[6.7000000000000002],[5.5],[5.4000000000000004],[4.9000000000000004],[5.2000000000000002],[5.5999999999999996],[4.9000000000000004],[4.2999999999999998],[3.3999999999999999],[3.3999999999999999],[3.3999999999999999],[3.5]],[[1.8],[1.3],[1.3],[1.2],[1],[1.3],[1],[1.3],[1.5],[1.3],[1.3999999999999999],[1.1000000000000001],[0.90000000000000002],[0.90000000000000002],[1.5],[1.5],[1.6000000000000001],[2],[2.2999999999999998],[2.2999999999999998],[2.2999999999999998],[2.7000000000000002],[3.1000000000000001],[3.3999999999999999],[3.7000000000000002],[4],[4.2999999999999998],[4.5],[5.4000000000000004],[5.9000000000000004],[6.0999999999999996],[6.0999999999999996],[6.5999999999999996],[7.2000000000000002],[6.5],[6.5],[6.5],[6.7000000000000002],[6.0999999999999996],[6],[5.5999999999999996],[5.5999999999999996],[5.4000000000000004],[5.2999999999999998],[4.5999999999999996],[4],[3.7999999999999998],[3.8999999999999999],[4]],[[2.3999999999999999],[1.2],[0.59999999999999998],[0.40000000000000002],[1.3999999999999999],[1.3],[1.3999999999999999],[1.8999999999999999],[2.1000000000000001],[1.8],[1.8999999999999999],[1.5],[1.1000000000000001],[2.1000000000000001],[3],[3.3999999999999999],[2.1000000000000001],[2.6000000000000001],[2.5],[2],[2.2000000000000002],[2.8999999999999999],[3.1000000000000001],[4.0999999999999996],[4.4000000000000004],[4.9000000000000004],[5.2000000000000002],[5.5],[6.2000000000000002],[6.5999999999999996],[6.5999999999999996],[7],[7.0999999999999996],[7.2000000000000002],[6.9000000000000004],[6.7999999999999998],[6.9000000000000004],[6.5],[6.4000000000000004],[6.0999999999999996],[5.7999999999999998],[5.5],[5.5],[5.0999999999999996],[4.7999999999999998],[4.2000000000000002],[4.0999999999999996],[3.8999999999999999],[4.0999999999999996]]]

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*Volatile items are Fruit and vegetables and Automotive fuel

Monthly CPI Indicator and Groups, Australia, annual movement (%)
	Oct-23 (%)	Nov-23 (%)	Dec-23 (%)	Jan-24 (%)	Feb-24 (%)	Mar-24 (%)
Monthly CPI indicator	4.9	4.3	3.4	3.4	3.4	3.5
Food & non-alcoholic beverages	5.3	4.6	4.0	4.4	3.6	3.5
Alcohol & tobacco	6.6	6.4	6.8	6.7	6.1	6.1
Clothing & footwear	-1.5	-0.9	-0.8	0.4	0.8	0.3
Housing	6.1	6.6	5.2	4.6	4.6	5.2
Furnishings, household equipment & services	0.4	-0.3	-0.3	0.3	-0.3	0.1
Health	6.3	5.2	4.7	3.9	3.9	4.1
Transport	5.9	3.6	3.6	3.0	3.4	4.5
Communications	1.8	2.4	2.0	2.0	1.7	1.6
Recreation & culture	2.7	1.2	-2.4	-1.7	0.4	-0.6
Education	4.8	4.8	4.7	4.7	5.1	5.2
Insurance & financial services	8.6	8.8	8.2	8.2	8.4	8.2

Monthly CPI Indicator and Groups, Australia, annual movement (%)

["","Oct-23","Nov-23","Dec-23","Jan-24","Feb-24","Mar-24"]

[["Monthly CPI indicator","Food & non-alcoholic beverages","Alcohol & tobacco","Clothing & footwear","Housing","Furnishings, household equipment & services","Health","Transport","Communications","Recreation & culture","Education","Insurance & financial services"],[[4.9000000000000004],[5.2999999999999998],[6.5999999999999996],[-1.5],[6.0999999999999996],[0.40000000000000002],[6.2999999999999998],[5.9000000000000004],[1.8],[2.7000000000000002],[4.7999999999999998],[8.5999999999999996]],[[4.2999999999999998],[4.5999999999999996],[6.4000000000000004],[-0.90000000000000002],[6.5999999999999996],[-0.29999999999999999],[5.2000000000000002],[3.6000000000000001],[2.3999999999999999],[1.2],[4.7999999999999998],[8.8000000000000007]],[[3.3999999999999999],[4],[6.7999999999999998],[-0.80000000000000004],[5.2000000000000002],[-0.29999999999999999],[4.7000000000000002],[3.6000000000000001],[2],[-2.3999999999999999],[4.7000000000000002],[8.1999999999999993]],[[3.3999999999999999],[4.4000000000000004],[6.7000000000000002],[0.40000000000000002],[4.5999999999999996],[0.29999999999999999],[3.8999999999999999],[3],[2],[-1.7],[4.7000000000000002],[8.1999999999999993]],[[3.3999999999999999],[3.6000000000000001],[6.0999999999999996],[0.80000000000000004],[4.5999999999999996],[-0.29999999999999999],[3.8999999999999999],[3.3999999999999999],[1.7],[0.40000000000000002],[5.0999999999999996],[8.4000000000000004]],[[3.5],[3.5],[6.0999999999999996],[0.29999999999999999],[5.2000000000000002],[0.10000000000000001],[4.0999999999999996],[4.5],[1.6000000000000001],[-0.59999999999999998],[5.2000000000000002],[8.1999999999999993]]]

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New dwellings and Rents

New dwelling prices rose 5.1% in the 12 months to March. The increase in New dwelling prices reflects builders continuing to pass on higher costs for labour and materials. The rate of price growth has remained around 5% annually over recent periods, down from the highs of over 20% recorded during 2022.

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

In monthly terms, rental prices rose 0.6% in March. Commonwealth Rent Assistance (CRA) increased from 20 March 2024 due to the usual biannual indexation. An increase in CRA reduces the out-of-pocket rental cost for CRA recipients. The monthly result includes a partial impact of this CRA change. Excluding the CRA increase, Rents would have risen by 0.7% over the month. The remaining impact of the CRA increase will be reflected in April.

New dwellings and Rents, Australia, annual movement (%)
	Rents (%)	New dwelling purchase by own occupiers (%)
Mar-20	0.2	0.5
Apr-20	0.2	0.7
May-20	-1.2	0.6
Jun-20	-1.2	1.0
Jul-20	-1.2	1.2
Aug-20	-1.5	1.8
Sep-20	-1.5	1.3
Oct-20	-1.5	1.4
Nov-20	-1.4	1.8
Dec-20	-1.4	1.6
Jan-21	-1.4	2.3
Feb-21	-1.5	0.9
Mar-21	-1.5	0.9
Apr-21	-1.5	0.0
May-21	0.0	1.6
Jun-21	0.0	1.9
Jul-21	0.0	2.1
Aug-21	0.3	4.1
Sep-21	0.3	5.0
Oct-21	0.3	5.0
Nov-21	0.3	6.9
Dec-21	0.3	9.6
Jan-22	0.3	10.5
Feb-22	1.0	13.4
Mar-22	1.0	15.8
Apr-22	1.0	19.3
May-22	1.5	19.4
Jun-22	1.5	20.7
Jul-22	2.0	21.7
Aug-22	2.4	20.5
Sep-22	2.9	20.0
Oct-22	3.5	20.4
Nov-22	3.6	17.9
Dec-22	4.1	16.0
Jan-23	4.8	14.7
Feb-23	4.8	13.0
Mar-23	5.3	11.1
Apr-23	6.1	9.2
May-23	6.3	8.3
Jun-23	7.3	6.6
Jul-23	7.6	5.9
Aug-23	7.8	4.8
Sep-23	7.6	4.9
Oct-23	6.6	4.7
Nov-23	7.1	5.5
Dec-23	7.4	5.1
Jan-24	7.4	4.8
Feb-24	7.6	4.9
Mar-24	7.7	5.1

New dwellings and Rents, Australia, annual movement (%)

["","Rents","New dwelling purchase by own occupiers"]

[["Mar-20","Apr-20","May-20","Jun-20","Jul-20","Aug-20","Sep-20","Oct-20","Nov-20","Dec-20","Jan-21","Feb-21","Mar-21","Apr-21","May-21","Jun-21","Jul-21","Aug-21","Sep-21","Oct-21","Nov-21","Dec-21","Jan-22","Feb-22","Mar-22","Apr-22","May-22","Jun-22","Jul-22","Aug-22","Sep-22","Oct-22","Nov-22","Dec-22","Jan-23","Feb-23","Mar-23","Apr-23","May-23","Jun-23","Jul-23","Aug-23","Sep-23","Oct-23","Nov-23","Dec-23","Jan-24","Feb-24","Mar-24"],[[0.20000000000000001],[0.20000000000000001],[-1.2],[-1.2],[-1.2],[-1.5],[-1.5],[-1.5],[-1.3999999999999999],[-1.3999999999999999],[-1.3999999999999999],[-1.5],[-1.5],[-1.5],[0],[0],[0],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[1],[1],[1],[1.5],[1.5],[2],[2.3999999999999999],[2.8999999999999999],[3.5],[3.6000000000000001],[4.0999999999999996],[4.7999999999999998],[4.7999999999999998],[5.2999999999999998],[6.0999999999999996],[6.2999999999999998],[7.2999999999999998],[7.5999999999999996],[7.7999999999999998],[7.5999999999999996],[6.5999999999999996],[7.0999999999999996],[7.4000000000000004],[7.4000000000000004],[7.5999999999999996],[7.7000000000000002]],[[0.5],[0.69999999999999996],[0.59999999999999998],[1],[1.2],[1.8],[1.3],[1.3999999999999999],[1.8],[1.6000000000000001],[2.2999999999999998],[0.90000000000000002],[0.90000000000000002],[0],[1.6000000000000001],[1.8999999999999999],[2.1000000000000001],[4.0999999999999996],[5],[5],[6.9000000000000004],[9.5999999999999996],[10.5],[13.4],[15.800000000000001],[19.300000000000001],[19.399999999999999],[20.699999999999999],[21.699999999999999],[20.5],[20],[20.399999999999999],[17.899999999999999],[16],[14.699999999999999],[13],[11.1],[9.1999999999999993],[8.3000000000000007],[6.5999999999999996],[5.9000000000000004],[4.7999999999999998],[4.9000000000000004],[4.7000000000000002],[5.5],[5.0999999999999996],[4.7999999999999998],[4.9000000000000004],[5.0999999999999996]]]

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Electricity and Gas

Electricity prices rose 5.2% in the 12 months to March, up from a rise of 0.3% to February. The rise was driven by the unwinding of Energy Bill Relief Fund rebates which have moderated the increase in electricity bills for households following annual price reviews in July 2023.

Gas prices fell 2.9% in the 12 months to March, the third consecutive month of annual deflation and down from the peak of 27.2% to May 2023.

In monthly terms, Electricity prices rose 4.8%. The rise was driven by households in Perth using up the second instalment of the Energy Bill Relief Fund rebates.

Electricity and Gas and other household fuels, Australia, annual movement (%)
	Electricity (%)	Gas and other household fuels (%)
Mar-22	4	6.1
Apr-22	3.5	5.9
May-22	3.7	2.9
Jun-22	2.8	6.7
Jul-22	3.9	17.1
Aug-22	5.3	18.6
Sep-22	0.5	17.6
Oct-22	11.9	17.2
Nov-22	10.6	17.2
Dec-22	14.6	18.7
Jan-23	15.3	27.1
Feb-23	15.6	25.9
Mar-23	15.7	26.1
Apr-23	15.2	26.3
May-23	14.1	27.2
Jun-23	10.2	22.2
Jul-23	15.7	13.9
Aug-23	12.7	12.9
Sep-23	18	12.7
Oct-23	10.1	13
Nov-23	10.7	12.9
Dec-23	0.4	8.5
Jan-24	0.8	-1.4
Feb-24	0.3	-2.4
Mar-24	5.2	-2.9

Electricity and Gas and other household fuels, Australia, annual movement (%)

["","Electricity","Gas and other household fuels"]

[["Mar-22","Apr-22","May-22","Jun-22","Jul-22","Aug-22","Sep-22","Oct-22","Nov-22","Dec-22","Jan-23","Feb-23","Mar-23","Apr-23","May-23","Jun-23","Jul-23","Aug-23","Sep-23","Oct-23","Nov-23","Dec-23","Jan-24","Feb-24","Mar-24"],[[4],[3.5],[3.7000000000000002],[2.7999999999999998],[3.8999999999999999],[5.2999999999999998],[0.5],[11.9],[10.6],[14.6],[15.300000000000001],[15.6],[15.699999999999999],[15.199999999999999],[14.1],[10.199999999999999],[15.699999999999999],[12.699999999999999],[18],[10.1],[10.699999999999999],[0.40000000000000002],[0.80000000000000004],[0.29999999999999999],[5.2000000000000002]],[[6.0999999999999996],[5.9000000000000004],[2.8999999999999999],[6.7000000000000002],[17.100000000000001],[18.600000000000001],[17.600000000000001],[17.199999999999999],[17.199999999999999],[18.699999999999999],[27.100000000000001],[25.899999999999999],[26.100000000000001],[26.300000000000001],[27.199999999999999],[22.199999999999999],[13.9],[12.9],[12.699999999999999],[13],[12.9],[8.5],[-1.3999999999999999],[-2.3999999999999999],[-2.8999999999999999]]]

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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 14.8% in the 12 months to March 2024.

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

Electricity index, Australia, index number (March 2023 = 100.0)
	Excluding Government Electricity Rebates (Index)	Including Government Electricity Rebates (Index)
Mar-23	100	100
Apr-23	99	99
May-23	98	98
Jun-23	97	97
Jul-23	116	103
Aug-23	117	102⁽¹⁾
Sep-23	117	102⁽²⁾
Oct-23	116	105
Nov-23	116	105⁽³⁾
Dec-23	115	100⁽⁴⁾
Jan-24	115	101⁽⁵⁾
Feb-24	115	100⁽⁶⁾
Mar-24	115	105

(1) EBRF (a) ↵
(2) EBRF (b) ↵
(3) EBRF (c) ↵
(4) EBRF (d) ↵
(5) EBRF (e) ↵
(6) EBRF (f) ↵

Electricity index, Australia, index number (March 2023 = 100.0)

["","Excluding Government Electricity Rebates","Including Government Electricity Rebates"]

[["Mar-23","Apr-23","May-23","Jun-23","Jul-23","Aug-23","Sep-23","Oct-23","Nov-23","Dec-23","Jan-24","Feb-24","Mar-24",""],[[100],[99],[98],[97],[116],[117],[117],[116],[116],[115],[115],[115],[115],[null]],[[100],[99],[98],[97],[103],[102],[102],[105],[105],[100],[101],[100],[105],[null]]]

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March 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 rebates for concession household in VIC.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages

Food and non-alcoholic beverage prices rose 3.5% in the 12 months to March, down slightly from a rise of 3.6% to February. The main contributors were Meals out and takeaway foods (+5.4%), Bread and cereal products (+7.3%) and Food products n.e.c. (+4.0%). Meat and seafood (-0.9%) and Fruit and vegetable (-1.2%) prices fell compared to 12 months ago.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages, Australia, annual movement (%)
	Annual (%)
Food & non-alcoholic beverages	3.5
Bread and cereal products	7.3
Meat and seafoods	-0.9
Dairy and related products	2.9
Fruit and vegetables	-1.2
Food products n.e.c.	4.0
Non-alcoholic beverages	5.5
Meals out and take away foods	5.4

Food and non-alcoholic beverages, Australia, annual movement (%)

["","Annual"]

[["Food & non-alcoholic beverages","Bread and cereal products","Meat and seafoods","Dairy and related products","Fruit and vegetables","Food products n.e.c.","Non-alcoholic beverages","Meals out and take away foods"],[[3.5],[7.2999999999999998],[-0.90000000000000002],[2.8999999999999999],[-1.2],[4],[5.5],[5.4000000000000004]]]

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Automotive fuel

Automotive fuel prices rose 8.1% in the 12 months to March, up from a rise of 4.1% to February. The rise was driven by higher wholesale fuel prices.

In monthly terms, Automotive fuel prices rose 1.5% in March, following a rise of 5.1% in February.

Automotive fuel, Australia, monthly and annual movement (%)
	Monthly (%)	Annual (%)
Mar-20	-9.3	-6.4
Apr-20	-15.9	-25.6
May-20	0.9	-26.1
Jun-20	9.1	-15.3
Jul-20	3.5	-12.7
Aug-20	-1.0	-12.8
Sep-20	0.6	-14.7
Oct-20	-0.4	-18.2
Nov-20	-1.0	-17.4
Dec-20	4.6	-14.3
Jan-21	1.7	-12.3
Feb-21	2.6	-6.9
Mar-21	7.0	9.9
Apr-21	1.7	32.9
May-21	-0.8	30.6
Jun-21	-0.3	19.4
Jul-21	7.1	23.6
Aug-21	-0.7	24.0
Sep-21	2.6	26.5
Oct-21	5.4	33.9
Nov-21	1.3	37.0
Dec-21	-3.4	26.5
Jan-22	4.3	29.7
Feb-22	6.0	34.0
Mar-22	12.5	40.9
Apr-22	-13.8	19.4
May-22	11.0	33.7
Jun-22	6.9	43.2
Jul-22	-3.4	29.2
Aug-22	-11.5	15.0
Sep-22	-1.7	10.1
Oct-22	7.0	11.8
Nov-22	5.6	16.6
Dec-22	-8.1	10.8
Jan-23	1.1	7.5
Feb-23	4.1	5.6
Mar-23	-2.2	-8.2
Apr-23	2.9	9.5
May-23	-6.7	-8.0
Jun-23	3.8	-10.6
Jul-23	-0.2	-7.6
Aug-23	9.1	13.9
Sep-23	3.3	19.7
Oct-23	-2.9	8.6
Nov-23	-0.5	2.3
Dec-23	-5.5	5.3
Jan-24	-0.9	3.1
Feb-24	5.1	4.1
Mar-24	1.5	8.1

Automotive fuel, Australia, monthly and annual movement (%)

["","Monthly","Annual"]

[["Mar-20","Apr-20","May-20","Jun-20","Jul-20","Aug-20","Sep-20","Oct-20","Nov-20","Dec-20","Jan-21","Feb-21","Mar-21","Apr-21","May-21","Jun-21","Jul-21","Aug-21","Sep-21","Oct-21","Nov-21","Dec-21","Jan-22","Feb-22","Mar-22","Apr-22","May-22","Jun-22","Jul-22","Aug-22","Sep-22","Oct-22","Nov-22","Dec-22","Jan-23","Feb-23","Mar-23","Apr-23","May-23","Jun-23","Jul-23","Aug-23","Sep-23","Oct-23","Nov-23","Dec-23","Jan-24","Feb-24","Mar-24"],[[-9.3000000000000007],[-15.9],[0.90000000000000002],[9.0999999999999996],[3.5],[-1],[0.59999999999999998],[-0.40000000000000002],[-1],[4.5999999999999996],[1.7],[2.6000000000000001],[7],[1.7],[-0.80000000000000004],[-0.29999999999999999],[7.0999999999999996],[-0.69999999999999996],[2.6000000000000001],[5.4000000000000004],[1.3],[-3.3999999999999999],[4.2999999999999998],[6],[12.5],[-13.800000000000001],[11],[6.9000000000000004],[-3.3999999999999999],[-11.5],[-1.7],[7],[5.5999999999999996],[-8.0999999999999996],[1.1000000000000001],[4.0999999999999996],[-2.2000000000000002],[2.8999999999999999],[-6.7000000000000002],[3.7999999999999998],[-0.20000000000000001],[9.0999999999999996],[3.2999999999999998],[-2.8999999999999999],[-0.5],[-5.5],[-0.90000000000000002],[5.0999999999999996],[1.5]],[[-6.4000000000000004],[-25.600000000000001],[-26.100000000000001],[-15.300000000000001],[-12.699999999999999],[-12.800000000000001],[-14.699999999999999],[-18.199999999999999],[-17.399999999999999],[-14.300000000000001],[-12.300000000000001],[-6.9000000000000004],[9.9000000000000004],[32.899999999999999],[30.600000000000001],[19.399999999999999],[23.600000000000001],[24],[26.5],[33.899999999999999],[37],[26.5],[29.699999999999999],[34],[40.899999999999999],[19.399999999999999],[33.700000000000003],[43.200000000000003],[29.199999999999999],[15],[10.1],[11.800000000000001],[16.600000000000001],[10.800000000000001],[7.5],[5.5999999999999996],[-8.1999999999999993],[9.5],[-8],[-10.6],[-7.5999999999999996],[13.9],[19.699999999999999],[8.5999999999999996],[2.2999999999999998],[5.2999999999999998],[3.1000000000000001],[4.0999999999999996],[8.0999999999999996]]]

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Holiday travel and accommodation

Holiday travel and accommodation prices fell 3.9% in the 12 months to March, following a fall of 1.3% to February.

In monthly terms, Holiday travel and accommodation prices fell 1.2% in March, as prices for airfares and accommodation continued to ease due to lower demand following the end of the school holiday period. Increased demand for domestic accommodation for the Easter break partially offset the fall.

Holiday travel and accommodation, Australia, monthly and annual movement (%)
	Monthly (%)	Annual (%)
Mar-20	1.9	4.4
Apr-20	2.7	-3.0
May-20	-2.0	2.3
Jun-20	-0.4	-0.9
Jul-20	6.0	-2.9
Aug-20	-0.5	3.7
Sep-20	-9.1	-7.1
Oct-20	-1.1	-10.7
Nov-20	-0.9	-5.7
Dec-20	11.6	-8.2
Jan-21	-2.6	-9.6
Feb-21	-7.9	-3.9
Mar-21	-1.5	-7.1
Apr-21	5.8	-4.2
May-21	-6.1	-8.3
Jun-21	4.3	-4.0
Jul-21	-1.4	-10.7
Aug-21	-0.3	-10.5
Sep-21	4.5	2.8
Oct-21	1.7	5.7
Nov-21	-4.1	2.3
Dec-21	10.8	1.5
Jan-22	1.9	6.1
Feb-22	-12.4	1.0
Mar-22	2.3	5.0
Apr-22	9.0	8.2
May-22	-7.5	6.6
Jun-22	5.4	7.8
Jul-22	3.6	13.3
Aug-22	-5.0	7.9
Sep-22	9.1	12.6
Oct-22	-6.4	3.7
Nov-22	4.3	12.8
Dec-22	27.0	29.3
Jan-23	-7.2	17.8
Feb-23	-14.6	14.9
Mar-23	1.5	13.9
Apr-23	7.2	11.9
May-23	-11.3	7.3
Jun-23	10.9	12.9
Jul-23	-3.3	5.3
Aug-23	-3.9	6.6
Sep-23	4.3	1.9
Oct-23	-7.0	1.3
Nov-23	2.7	-0.3
Dec-23	15.8	-9.1
Jan-24	-5.2	-7.1
Feb-24	-9.3	-1.3
Mar-24	-1.2	-3.9

Holiday travel and accommodation, Australia, monthly and annual movement (%)

["","Monthly","Annual"]

[["Mar-20","Apr-20","May-20","Jun-20","Jul-20","Aug-20","Sep-20","Oct-20","Nov-20","Dec-20","Jan-21","Feb-21","Mar-21","Apr-21","May-21","Jun-21","Jul-21","Aug-21","Sep-21","Oct-21","Nov-21","Dec-21","Jan-22","Feb-22","Mar-22","Apr-22","May-22","Jun-22","Jul-22","Aug-22","Sep-22","Oct-22","Nov-22","Dec-22","Jan-23","Feb-23","Mar-23","Apr-23","May-23","Jun-23","Jul-23","Aug-23","Sep-23","Oct-23","Nov-23","Dec-23","Jan-24","Feb-24","Mar-24"],[[1.8999999999999999],[2.7000000000000002],[-2],[-0.40000000000000002],[6],[-0.5],[-9.0999999999999996],[-1.1000000000000001],[-0.90000000000000002],[11.6],[-2.6000000000000001],[-7.9000000000000004],[-1.5],[5.7999999999999998],[-6.0999999999999996],[4.2999999999999998],[-1.3999999999999999],[-0.29999999999999999],[4.5],[1.7],[-4.0999999999999996],[10.800000000000001],[1.8999999999999999],[-12.4],[2.2999999999999998],[9],[-7.5],[5.4000000000000004],[3.6000000000000001],[-5],[9.0999999999999996],[-6.4000000000000004],[4.2999999999999998],[27],[-7.2000000000000002],[-14.6],[1.5],[7.2000000000000002],[-11.300000000000001],[10.9],[-3.2999999999999998],[-3.8999999999999999],[4.2999999999999998],[-7],[2.7000000000000002],[15.800000000000001],[-5.2000000000000002],[-9.3000000000000007],[-1.2]],[[4.4000000000000004],[-3],[2.2999999999999998],[-0.90000000000000002],[-2.8999999999999999],[3.7000000000000002],[-7.0999999999999996],[-10.699999999999999],[-5.7000000000000002],[-8.1999999999999993],[-9.5999999999999996],[-3.8999999999999999],[-7.0999999999999996],[-4.2000000000000002],[-8.3000000000000007],[-4],[-10.699999999999999],[-10.5],[2.7999999999999998],[5.7000000000000002],[2.2999999999999998],[1.5],[6.0999999999999996],[1],[5],[8.1999999999999993],[6.5999999999999996],[7.7999999999999998],[13.300000000000001],[7.9000000000000004],[12.6],[3.7000000000000002],[12.800000000000001],[29.300000000000001],[17.800000000000001],[14.9],[13.9],[11.9],[7.2999999999999998],[12.9],[5.2999999999999998],[6.5999999999999996],[1.8999999999999999],[1.3],[-0.29999999999999999],[-9.0999999999999996],[-7.0999999999999996],[-1.3],[-3.8999999999999999]]]

[]

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Data downloads

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Time Series Spreadsheets

Data files

TABLE 1. Monthly CPI Indicator: All groups, Groups, select Expenditure classes and Analytical series, Australia, Index Numbers and Percentage Change from Corresponding Month of Previous Year, Weighted Average of Eight Capital Cities
Download xlsx [83.67 KB]
TABLE 2. Monthly CPI Indicator: select Groups, select Expenditure classes and Analytical series, Australia, Percentage Change from previous period, Weighted Average of Eight Capital Cities
Download xlsx [53.61 KB]

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Data explorer for the monthly CPI indicator.

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Detailed monthly data

Monthly Expenditure class data


	Monthly % Change			Annual % Change
Index name	January 24	February 24	March 24	March 23 to March 24	Frequency
Bread	0.2	0.4	-0.2	8.4	Monthly
Cakes and biscuits	0.4	-0.8	1.2	8.2	Monthly
Breakfast cereals	-3.6	-3.3	1.1	4.6	Monthly
Other cereal products	-0.8	-1.4	1.1	2.2	Monthly
Beef and veal	-0.2	-1.6	0.5	-5.7	Monthly
Pork	0.9	-0.6	0.3	3.7	Monthly
Lamb and goat	0.4	6.3	4.4	-12.2	Monthly
Poultry	0.7	-0.1	0.5	1.7	Monthly
Other meats	-0.8	1.6	2.1	0.8	Monthly
Fish and other seafood	-0.5	-0.9	-0.7	5.3	Monthly
Milk	-0.5	-0.6	0.9	2.0	Monthly
Cheese	0.4	-0.8	-0.3	3.5	Monthly
Ice cream & other dairy products	-1.9	-1.2	1.0	3.6	Monthly
Fruit	-2.4	0.2	0.0	-6.9	Monthly
Vegetables	3.4	1.7	0.8	3.1	Monthly
Eggs	-0.2	0.2	0.2	6.8	Monthly
Jams, honey & spreads	-0.5	-0.5	0.7	3.5	Monthly
Food additives & condiments	1.4	0.4	-0.9	2.5	Monthly
Oils and fats	2.3	0.5	-0.9	6.3	Monthly
Snacks and confectionery	2.2	-2.1	0.0	4.2	Monthly
Other food products n.e.c.	-0.5	-0.3	-0.6	2.3	Monthly
Coffee, tea and cocoa	-1.7	0.0	1.5	3.2	Monthly
Waters soft drinks & juices	2.6	0.8	1.1	6.1	Monthly
Restaurant meals	imp	0.5	imp	4.4	Quarterly
Takeaway and fast foods	imp	0.5	imp	6.6	Quarterly
Spirits	-0.1	1.5	1.2	2.9	Monthly
Wine	0.2	0.2	-1.2	-1.0	Monthly**
Beer	0.5	1.0	0.3	5.9	Monthly
Tobacco	0.1	0.2	2.3	12.4	Monthly
Garments for men	-1.8	4.9	-0.5	1.9	Monthly**
Garments for women	-2.9	3.2	-0.6	1.3	Monthly**
Garments for infant & child	-3.8	imp	imp	2.5	Quarterly
Footwear for men	-0.3	imp	imp	-0.3	Quarterly
Footwear for women	-3.0	imp	imp	-2.0	Quarterly
Footwear for infant & child	-4.5	imp	imp	-0.7	Quarterly
Accessories	-2.2	imp	imp	-2.6	Quarterly
Cleaning, repair & hire	0.9	imp	imp	6.6	Quarterly
Rents	0.7	0.8	0.6	7.7	Monthly**
New dwelling purchase by owner occupiers	0.1	0.3	0.4	5.1	Monthly**
Maintenance & repair of dwelling	0.3	imp	imp	3.3	Quarterly
Property rates and charges	imp	imp	0.0	4.3	Quarterly***
Water and sewerage	imp	imp	0.0	5.8	Quarterly***
Electricity	0.9	-0.6	4.8	5.2	Monthly
Gas and other household fuels	-1.8	-0.2	-0.2	-2.9	Monthly
Furniture	-5.6	imp	imp	-3.3	Quarterly
Carpets & other floor cover	0.4	imp	imp	2.4	Quarterly
Household textiles	-0.2	imp	imp	0.1	Quarterly
Major household appliances	1.2	imp	imp	-2.4	Quarterly
Small electronic household appliances	-4.5	imp	imp	-2.4	Quarterly
Glassware, tableware & household	0.6	imp	imp	-1.0	Quarterly
Tools & equipment	0.3	imp	imp	2.2	Quarterly
Cleaning & maintenance products	-2.0	0.3	0.6	1.8	Monthly
Personal care products	-0.2	-1.6	1.4	1.6	Monthly
Other non-durable household products	-0.2	0.1	0.5	-1.1	Monthly
Child care	imp	imp	3.9	-5.6	Quarterly
Hairdressing & personal grooming	imp	2.1	imp	7.0	Quarterly
Other household services	imp	0.2	imp	2.3	Quarterly
Pharmaceutical products	imp	imp	7.0	2.9	Quarterly
Therapeutic appliances and equipment	imp	imp	0.6	0.8	Quarterly
Medical & hospital services	imp	imp	2.2	4.6	Quarterly***
Dental services	imp	imp	1.0	4.3	Quarterly
Motor vehicles	imp	imp	1.0	0.4	Quarterly
Spare parts & accessories	imp	3.1	imp	2.8	Quarterly
Automotive fuel	-0.9	5.1	1.5	8.1	Monthly
Maintenance & repair of vehicle	imp	1.1	imp	4.3	Quarterly
Other services in respect of motor vehicle	imp	1.3	imp	5.4	Quarterly
Urban transport fares	imp	0.3	imp	4.8	Quarterly
Postal services	-0.4	1.3	0.0	12.0	Monthly
Telecommunications equip & services	0.1	-0.1	-0.1	1.0	Quarterly*
Audio, visual & computer equipment	1.7	0.0	-0.4	0.2	Quarterly*
Audio, visual, media & services	imp	2.0	imp	3.2	Quarterly
Books	imp	imp	2.1	-0.3	Quarterly
Newspaper magazine & stationery	imp	imp	2.3	5.9	Quarterly
Domestic holiday travel & accommodation	0.7	-9.0	1.0	-2.8	Monthly
International holiday travel & accommodation	-11.6	-9.6	-4.0	-2.5	Monthly
Equipment for sports, camping & recreation	imp	1.6	imp	0.3	Quarterly
Games, toys and hobbies	imp	1.2	imp	-1.7	Quarterly
Pets and related products	0.9	-1.3	0.6	1.7	Monthly
Veterinary and other services for pets	imp	imp	0.9	7.1	Quarterly
Sports participation	imp	0.8	0.4	7.9	Quarterly****
Other recreational sports & cultural services	imp	3.0	imp	9.2	Quarterly
Preschool & primary education	imp	4.3	0.0	-0.1	Quarterly***
Secondary education	imp	6.1	imp	6.1	Quarterly***
Tertiary education	imp	6.4	imp	7.0	Quarterly***
Insurance	imp	3.7	imp	16.5	Quarterly
D&L Facilities	0.2	0.1	0.3	6.0	Monthly
Other financial services	imp	imp	1.5	6.0	Quarterly

Imp = Imputed. Quarterly index, not collected in that month.
* Some components measured monthly.
** Some components measured quarterly.
*** Measured quarterly and/or typically changes once per year.
**** Measured in months two and three of the quarter.

About the monthly CPI indicator

What is the monthly CPI Indicator?

The monthly Consumer Price Index (CPI) indicator was developed to provide inflation data at a higher frequency for use by governments, economists and the wider community. The quarterly CPI remains the principal measure of household inflation.

Monthly CPI Indicator coverage

The monthly CPI indicator is derived using available data from the quarterly CPI. The ABS collects prices for the CPI in a range of frequencies including monthly, quarterly, and annual. The frequency of price collection is determined by how often prices change. Where price change occurs frequently, such as for food and petrol, monthly price data is collected. Where price change is less frequent, such as for restaurant meals and hairdressers, price data is available quarterly. In some cases, prices are collected once per year where it is known prices only change annually. This is the case for some education fees, property rates and private health insurance.

For this reason, the composition of the monthly CPI basket varies across the three months of the quarter, details of the monthly coverage composition are detailed in Table 1 below.

Table 1. What's price updated - monthly breakdown
Month 1	Month 2	Month 3
Bread	Bread	Bread
Cakes and biscuits	Cakes and biscuits	Cakes and biscuits
Breakfast cereals	Breakfast cereals	Breakfast cereals
Other cereal products	Other cereal products	Other cereal products
Beef and veal	Beef and veal	Beef and veal
Pork	Pork	Pork
Lamb and goat	Lamb and goat	Lamb and goat
Poultry	Poultry	Poultry
Other meats	Other meats	Other meats
Fish and other seafood	Fish and other seafood	Fish and other seafood
Milk	Milk	Milk
Cheese	Cheese	Cheese
Ice cream & other dairy prod	Ice cream & other dairy prod	Ice cream & other dairy prod
Fruit	Fruit	Fruit
Vegetables	Vegetables	Vegetables
Eggs	Eggs	Eggs
Jams, honey & spreads	Jams, honey & spreads	Jams, honey & spreads
Food additives & condiments	Food additives & condiments	Food additives & condiments
Oils and fats	Oils and fats	Oils and fats
Snacks and confectionery	Snacks and confectionery	Snacks and confectionery
Other food products n.e.c.	Other food products n.e.c.	Other food products n.e.c.*
Coffee, tea and cocoa	Coffee, tea and cocoa	Coffee, tea and cocoa
Waters soft drinks & juices	Waters soft drinks & juices	Waters soft drinks & juices
Spirits	Restaurant meals	Spirits
Wine	Takeaway and fast foods	Wine
Beer	Spirits	Beer
Tobacco	Wine	Tobacco
Garments for men	Beer	Garments for men
Garments for women	Tobacco	Garments for women
Garments for infant & child	Garments for men	Rents
Footwear for men	Garments for women	New dwelling purchase by owner occupiers
Footwear for women	Rents	Property rates and charges (annual)
Footwear for infant & child	New dwelling purchase by owner occupiers	Water and sewerage
Accessories	Electricity	Electricity
Electricity	Gas and other household fuels	Gas and other household fuels
Gas and other household fuels	Cleaning & maintenance prod	Cleaning & maintenance prod
Cleaning, repair & hire	Personal care products	Personal care products
Rents	Other non-durable household prods	Other non-durable household prods
New dwelling purchase by owner occupiers	Hairdressing & personal grooming	Child care
Maintenance & repair of dwelling	Other household services	Pharmaceutical products
Electricity	Spare parts & accessories	Therapeutic appliances and equipment
Furniture	Automotive fuel	Medical & hospital services
Carpets & other floor cover	Maintenance & repair of vehicle	Medical services
Household textiles	Other services in respect of motor vehicle	Dental services
Major household appliances	Urban transport fares	Motor vehicles
Small electronic household appliances	Postal services	Automotive fuel
Glassware, tableware & household	Telecommunications equip & services (partial monthly)	Postal services
Tools & equipment	Audio,visual & computer equipment	Telecommunications equip & services (partial monthly)
Cleaning & maintenance prod	Audio, visual, media & services	Audio,visual & computer equipment
Personal care products	Domestic holiday travel & accommodation	Books
Other non-durable household prods	International holiday travel & accommodation	Newspaper magazine & stationery
Medical & hospital services	Equipment for sports,camp	Domestic holiday travel & accommodation
Private Health insurance (annual, plus irregular changes)	Games, toys and hobbies	International holiday travel & accommodation
Automotive fuel	Pets and related products	Pets and related products
Postal services	Sports participation	Vet & other pet services
Telecommunications equip & services (partial monthly)	Other recreational sports & cultural services	Sports participation
Audio,visual & computer equipment	Preschool & primary education (quarterly & annual)	Preschool & primary education (quarterly & annual)
Domestic holiday travel & accommodation	Secondary education (annual)	D&L Facilities (direct)
International holiday travel & accommodation	Tertiary education (bi-annual)	Other financial services
Pets and related products	Insurance
D&L Facilities (direct)	D&L Facilities (direct)

* n.e.c Not elsewhere classified

Introducing monthly indicators of underlying inflation

The December 2022 release of the monthly CPI indicator stated

"The release of the monthly CPI indicator includes a Trimmed mean series which was intended to provide additional analytical insights into inflation on a monthly basis. The ABS has identified that the Trimmed mean series is not, however, providing a reliable indicator for the principal measure of trimmed mean inflation published in the quarterly CPI publication. The ABS will suspend the publication of the monthly Trimmed mean series while we investigate."

Since this decision the ABS has investigated the monthly trimmed mean measure and assessed alternative measures of underlying inflation.

Investigation of monthly Trimmed mean

The investigation found there was a downward bias in the monthly Trimmed mean when compared to the quarterly Trimmed mean, which is considered the principal measure of underlying inflation. The bias was evident during a period of rising inflation caused by the use of carry forward imputation for some monthly data. Details on the carry forward imputation approach are provided in Introducing a monthly CPI indicator. Carry forward imputation is not used in the quarterly CPI and therefore does not affect the quarterly Trimmed mean.

Alternative measures of underlying inflation

The ABS assessed variations of established measures of underlying inflation. Two alternatives were found to be a reasonable indicator of annual movements of the quarterly Trimmed mean:

Annual trimmed mean. This measure uses a similar method to the quarterly trimmed mean. The key difference is rather than use the quarterly movements in the trimming process, the annual movements are used. In this case, each month the annual movements of the 87 CPI series are ranked from lowest to highest. The top and bottom 15% of annual movements are removed, with the average is taken from the middle 70% of annual movements. For more details on the Trimmed mean method see Underlying Inflation Measures: Explaining the Trimmed Mean.
CPI excluding volatile items and holiday travel. CPI exclusion based measures are used by many countries to provide different insights into CPI inflation by removing the effects of certain items. Typically, the price change for these items tend to be volatile and often not reflective of the underlying inflationary trends. This new measure builds on the existing 'CPI excluding volatile items' series and also excludes holiday travel. Volatile items are fruit, vegetables and automotive fuel.

For holiday travel, it has been shown that events such as Christmas and Easter, as well as school holidays, have a significant impact on airfare and accommodation prices. This sees monthly movements for holiday travel as quite volatile. By calculating a series that excludes the monthly movements of holiday travel and the other volatile items, the monthly movements at the aggregate CPI level provide a reasonable insight of underlying inflation.

Articles

Monthly CPI indicator articles and related media

Measuring Rents in the CPI

New data source

As outlined in the ABS’ information paper Introducing a monthly CPI indicator for Australia, from July 2022 the ABS has incorporated a new data source to measure the Rents series in the monthly CPI indicator and the quarterly CPI.
The Rents series prior to July 2022 was measured on a quarterly basis using a survey of approximately 4,000 rental properties collected directly from real estate agents.
The new dataset obtained by the ABS is updated monthly and includes approximately 480,000 rental properties that are used to produce the CPI Rents series across all capital cities.

What the CPI Rents series measures

The CPI measures the prices being paid by households for the goods and services that they consume during a particular measurement period (e.g. month or quarter). In the case of rents, this means that the CPI measures the current ‘price’ being paid by all types of households that rent including new and existing renters who are renting privately or from the government.
Measures of rental inflation that are based on newly advertised rental properties only measure changes in the asking or advertised price of rental properties for new tenancies. At any given time, newly advertised tenancies represent a relatively small proportion of properties being rented in Australia. The Rents series used for the CPI measures actual rents paid rather than advertised prices.
Advertised rents tend to reflect the dynamic end of the rental market where the price change for new tenancies can be more volatile than that being experienced by renters with existing tenancy agreements.
Price changes observed in advertised rents series are expected to eventually flow through to the CPI Rents series. However, the small share of rental properties leased to new tenants each quarter means that it takes some time for changes in advertised rents to impact price change observed in the CPI Rents series.
A useful analogy is to think about a bathtub of water. The water in the tub represents all rents being paid by households, while the water entering the tub from the tap represents new rental agreements. The CPI series is measuring the overall temperature of the bathtub whereas an advertised rents series measures the temperature of the water flowing into the tub. It will take some time for the flow of water to change the overall temperature of the water in the bathtub.

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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