Published On: January 10th, 2024
Australia’s inflation rate dropped to a two-year low in November 2023. The country’s core inflation also slowed sharply. This result reinforced market expectations that interest rates would not rise further for a specific period.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released data on the inflation rate Australia 2023 this Wednesday. This data showed that the country’s monthly consumer price index (CPI) rose at an annual rate of 4.3% in November. This came down from 4.9% in October and under the regular market forecasts of 4.4%.
Inflation Australia: Latest Updates
The head of price statistics at the ABS, Michelle Marquardt, said housing costs continued to rise. It was up to 6.6% from a year ago for the unversed. On the other hand, food and non-alcoholic beverages rose 4.6%. This was followed by insurance and financial services, which were 8.8% more expensive.
The monthly inflation rates Australia figures offer only a partial snapshot of price pressures. The authorities have compared these rates with the December quarter numbers. These numerical updates are due out on January 31, 2024. Yet, these numbers provide more proof that inflation is continuing to wane. This is as intended in RBA’s 13 increases in the respective cash rate since May 2022. Australia’s current inflation rate proves this number has been the fastest in three decades.
According to the ASX rates tracker, the investors also rated the chance of a 14th rate hike less than 10% in the lead-up to today’s release. These people were fully pricing in a rate cut to 4.1% by 25 basis points as the next move by the RBA by the end of September.
The reason behind this change in inflation rates Australia is the alteration in a closely watched measure of the core inflation. It rose to an annual 4.6% this time. It means the rates went down sharply from 5.3% in November.
The CPI also slowed to 4.8% from 5.1% this Wednesday. However, the authorities calculated by excluding volatile items and holiday travel.
Australia’s Inflation Rate Over the Years
Australia’s monthly inflation rate peaked at 8.4% when it was counted in December 2022. This rate has trended chiefly lower since then. The numbers completely changed in the inflation rate Australia 2023 data.
The November data for that year has a greater weighting on services than the earlier month. The rate of goods price increases in Australia has been falling quarterly for a year.
The service inflation only started retreating in the last quarter of 2023, which began in September.
The Australian market’s initial reaction to the inflation numbers was limited. Stocks were also 0.2% down for the day. The Australian dollar became around 0.1 US cents higher, which made it worth 66.95 US cents.
Latest Updates on Inflation Rates Australia
The November retail sales figures on Australia’s inflation rate were released Monday. It showed that the consumers spent more than expected in a month. This was further boosted by major discounting events, which include Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
The turnover for different sectors rose 2% for the month. However, the spending remained just 2.2% higher than a year earlier. The economists had already predicted a slight fall in the inflation rate after approvals rose 7.2%. Moreover, the RBA had lifted the cash rate again that particular month.
Building approvals for the month were also better than forecasted, expanding 1.6% to just over 14,500.
