Australian Inflation Falls to 2-Year Low

According to data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), the consumer price index (CPI) - Australia's headline measure of inflation - rose by 0.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2023 spanning from the start of October to the end of December - half the 1.2 percent rise in the previous three-month period.

It marks the lowest quarterly CPI rise since the first quarter of 2021.

In the 12 months to the end of December, the CPI rose by 4.1 percent, the ABS said, down from a peak annual rise of 7.8 percent in the year to December 2022.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported that economists had forecast quarterly inflation of 0.8 percent and an annual figure of 4.3 percent.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said at a press conference following the release of the figures that they were encouraging but that Australians are still under financial pressure.

"These figures show we are making more welcome and encouraging progress in the fight against inflation, but it is not 'mission accomplished' because we know people are still under the pump," he said.

The ABS identified the rising costs of housing, alcohol and tobacco, insurance and financial services and food and non-alcoholic beverages as the biggest contributors to inflation in the final quarter of 2023.

Those rises were partially offset by a 1.2 percent fall in the prices of meat and seafood and fruit and vegetables in the period.

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