Latest release

International Trade Price Indexes, Australia

Contains indexes measuring changes in prices of imports of merchandise landed in Australia and exports of merchandise shipped from Australia

Reference period

March 2022

Released

28/04/2022

Key statistics

Export price index rose 18.0% this quarter and 46.7% through the year.
Import price index rose 5.1% this quarter and 19.3% through the year.

Export price index

The main contributors to the rise were:

Coal, coke and briquettes (+32.0%), driven by surging global demand for thermal and coking coals.
Metalliferous ores and metal scrap (+25.5%), driven by the increase in demand for iron ore from China.
Gas, natural and manufactured (+13.0%), due to the rise in oil-linked contracts capturing the continued oil price rises in late 2021.
Petroleum, petroleum products and related materials (+27.5%), driven by strong global oil demand and supply constraints.
Gold, non-monetary (+4.8%), through increased demand for the safe-haven commodity due to growing international inflationary pressures and economic uncertainty surrounding the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Export price index - all groups, quarterly % change
Quarter	% change
Mar-18	4.9
Jun-18	1.9
Sep-18	3.7
Dec-18	4.4
Mar-19	4.5
Jun-19	3.8
Sep-19	1.3
Dec-19	-5.2
Mar-20	2.7
Jun-20	-2.4
Sep-20	-5.1
Dec-20	5.5
Mar-21	11.2
Jun-21	13.2
Sep-21	6.2
Dec-21	3.5
Mar-22	18.0

["Quarter","% change"]

[["Mar-18","Jun-18","Sep-18","Dec-18","Mar-19","Jun-19","Sep-19","Dec-19","Mar-20","Jun-20","Sep-20","Dec-20","Mar-21","Jun-21","Sep-21","Dec-21","Mar-22"],[[4.9000000000000004],[1.8999999999999999],[3.7000000000000002],[4.4000000000000004],[4.5],[3.7999999999999998],[1.3],[-5.2000000000000002],[2.7000000000000002],[-2.3999999999999999],[-5.0999999999999996],[5.5],[11.199999999999999],[13.199999999999999],[6.2000000000000002],[3.5],[18]]]

[]

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Through the year, the Export Price Index rose 46.7%. The main contributors were:

Coal, coke and briquettes (+243.4%), and
Gas, natural and manufactured (+145.8%).

Import price index

The main contributors to the rise were:

Petroleum, petroleum products and related materials (+20.4%), driven by strong global oil demand and supply constraints.
Fertilisers (excluding crude) (+19.0%), due to rising energy costs of production and strong global demand, particularly for urea.
Electrical machinery apparatus (+4.5%), driven by rising production costs.
Articles of apparel and clothing (+4.7%), driven by higher material costs and costs of manufacturing.

Coffee, tea and cocoa (+20.1%), driven by higher costs of production, including fertilisers costs.

Import price index - all groups, quarterly % change
Quarter	% change
Mar-18	2.0
Jun-18	3.2
Sep-18	1.9
Dec-18	0.5
Mar-19	-0.5
Jun-19	0.9
Sep-19	0.4
Dec-19	0.7
Mar-20	-1.0
Jun-20	-1.9
Sep-20	-3.5
Dec-20	-1.0
Mar-21	0.2
Jun-21	1.9
Sep-21	5.4
Dec-21	5.8
Mar-22	5.1

["Quarter","% change"]

[["Mar-18","Jun-18","Sep-18","Dec-18","Mar-19","Jun-19","Sep-19","Dec-19","Mar-20","Jun-20","Sep-20","Dec-20","Mar-21","Jun-21","Sep-21","Dec-21","Mar-22"],[[2],[3.2000000000000002],[1.8999999999999999],[0.5],[-0.5],[0.90000000000000002],[0.40000000000000002],[0.69999999999999996],[-1],[-1.8999999999999999],[-3.5],[-1],[0.20000000000000001],[1.8999999999999999],[5.4000000000000004],[5.7999999999999998],[5.0999999999999996]]]

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Through the year, the Import Price Index rose 19.3%. The main contributor was:

Petroleum, petroleum products and related materials (+70.7%).

Data downloads

Time series spreadsheets

Data files

Tables 1, 3 and 12. Import price index by SITC, index numbers and percentage changes
Download xlsx [119.37 KB]
Tables 4, 5 and 6. Import price index by balance of payments broad economic categories, index numbers
Download xlsx [75.59 KB]
Tables 7 and 9. Export price index by SITC, index numbers and percentage changes
Download xlsx [117.62 KB]
Tables 10 and 11. Export price index by balance of payments classification of exports, index numbers
Download xlsx [61.03 KB]
Table 13. Import price index by selected HTISC section, index numbers
Download xlsx [121.33 KB]
Tables 14 and 15. Import price index by selected ANZSIC division and subdivision, index numbers
Download xlsx [64.78 KB]
Table 16. Import price index: BEC category, index numbers
Download xlsx [53.44 KB]
Table 18. Export price index by selected AHECC section, index numbers
Download xlsx [113.59 KB]
Table 19. Export price index by selected ANZSIC division and subdivision, index numbers
Download xlsx [57.74 KB]
All time series spreadsheets
Download zip [728.12 KB]

Download all (70.11 KB)

Data cubes

Data files

Table 2 Import price index, SITC contribution to all group index
Download xlsx [27.91 KB]
Table 8 Export price index, SITC contribution to all group index
Download xlsx [28.17 KB]
Table 17 Export price index, AHECC and ANZSIC contribution to all groups index
Download xlsx [26.16 KB]

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Import Price Index

Export Price Index

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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.

Previous catalogue number

This release previously used catalogue number 6457.0.

Methodology