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
May 2023
Released
28/06/2023

Key statistics

  • The monthly CPI indicator rose 5.6% in the twelve months to May.

  • The most significant price rises were Housing (+8.4%), Food and non-alcoholic beverages (+7.9%) and Furnishings, household equipment and services group (+6.0%).

  • Offsetting the rise was Automotive fuel (-8.0%).

Main features

Weighted average of eight capital cities, annual movement
 Mar 22 to Mar 23 % changeApr 22 to Apr 23 % changeMay 22 to May 23 % change
All groups monthly CPI6.36.85.6
Food and non-alcoholic beverages8.17.97.9
     Bread and cereal products10.811.412.8
     Meat & seafood4.34.43.8
     Dairy and related products15.114.515.1
     Fruit & vegetables5.93.52.7
     Food products n.e.c.11.811.711.5
     Non-alcoholic beverages7.29.79.2
     Meals out and takeaway foods*7.37.37.7
Alcohol and tobacco4.94.84.7
     Alcohol5.45.15.0
     Tobacco3.94.34.1
Clothing and footwear3.22.0-0.4
    Garments3.03.5-0.6
Housing9.58.98.4
     Rents5.36.16.3
     New dwelling purchases by owner-occupiers11.19.28.3
     Electricity15.715.214.1
Furnishings, household equipment and services7.26.36.0
Health5.44.74.7
Transport0.87.10.8
     Automotive fuel-8.29.5-8.0
Communications1.20.21.1
Recreation and culture6.16.43.5
     Holiday travel and accommodation13.911.97.3
Education5.55.55.5
Insurance and financial services6.66.77.8
CPI analytical series   
       Seasonally adjusted6.66.95.8
       CPI excluding volatile items** and holiday travel6.96.56.4
       Annual Trimmed mean6.56.76.1
  • * Measured quarterly
  • **Volatile items are Fruit and vegetables and Automotive fuel

Monthly Overview

The monthly CPI indicator rose 5.6% annually in May, down from 6.8% in April.

The annual movement for the monthly CPI excluding volatile items and travel rose 6.4% in May, slightly lower than the rise of 6.5% in April. This series excludes Fruit and vegetables, Automotive fuel, and Holiday travel and accommodation.

Annual trimmed mean inflation was 6.1% in May, down from 6.7% in April.

*Volatile items are Fruit and vegetables and Automotive fuel

New dwellings

New dwelling prices rose 8.3% in the twelve months to May, reflecting high labour and material costs.

The rate of price growth has continued to ease compared to the record high increase of 21.7% in the twelve months to July 2022. This reflects a softening in new demand and improvements in the supply of materials.

Rents

Rent prices increased 6.3% in the twelve months to May 2023, up from 6.1% in April, reflecting strong demand for rental properties and tight rental markets.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages

Annual prices for Food and non-alcoholic beverages rose 7.9%, with price rises seen across all food categories.

The main contributor was Meals out and takeaway food, which rose 7.7%. The increase was due to higher input costs including ingredients, energy, rents and wages. Food products n.e.c. rose 11.5% due to price rises for snacks and confectionary products and edible oils. Dairy and related products rose 15.1% due to higher input costs such as farmgate milk prices.

* Measured quarterly

Automotive fuel

Automotive fuel prices fell 8.0% in the twelve months to May, following a rise of 9.5% in April.

In monthly terms, Automotive fuel prices fell 6.7% in May due to increased oil production and a higher Australian dollar lowering the cost for imported oil.

Holiday travel and accommodation

Holiday travel and accommodation rose 7.3% in the twelve months to May, down from 11.9% in April. While demand and prices remain elevated for both Domestic and International holiday travel and accommodation, prices have eased since peaking in December 2022.

In monthly terms, Holiday travel and accommodation prices fell 11.3%, driven by domestic holiday travel and accommodation. Prices fell in May following strong demand in April due to Easter and the school holiday period.

Insurance

Insurance prices rose 14.2% in the twelve months to May, up from 8.7% in April. This is the strongest annual rise on record reflecting higher premiums for house, home contents, and motor vehicle insurance.

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Detailed monthly data

Monthly Expenditure class data

 Monthly % ChangeAnnual % Change  
Index nameMar 23Apr 23May 23May 22 to May 23 Frequency
Bread-0.22.93.515.3 Monthly
Cakes and biscuits-0.21.90.211.7 Monthly
Breakfast cereals4.6-2.63.811.4 Monthly
Other cereal products1.30.2-0.39.4 Monthly
Beef and veal-0.4-0.4-0.8-2.0 Monthly
Pork0.1-0.80.13.2 Monthly
Lamb and goat-1.01.20.2-2.0 Monthly
Poultry0.81.01.18.0 Monthly
Other meats0.3-0.60.55.5 Monthly
Fish and other seafood-1.01.11.310.5 Monthly
Milk1.3-0.9-0.115.8 Monthly
Cheese1.1-0.40.215.2 Monthly
Ice cream & other dairy products3.62.3-0.513.9 Monthly
Fruit EC0.6-3.90.65.5 Monthly
Vegetables1.41.62.10.8 Monthly
Eggs0.50.00.613.0 Monthly
Jams, honey & spreads1.6-1.30.16.5 Monthly
Food additives & condiments-0.30.40.18.2 Monthly
Oils and fats0.50.20.315.3 Monthly
Snacks and confectionery0.90.2-0.412.1 Monthly
Other food products n.e.c. 0.41.2-0.811.9 Monthly
Coffee, tea and cocoa-1.30.8-1.06.6 Monthly
Waters soft drinks & juices1.32.40.210.0 Monthly
Restaurant meals impimp1.06.5 Quarterly
Takeaway and fast foods impimp2.79.2 Quarterly
Spirits1.0-0.30.010.6 Monthly
Wine1.0-0.6-0.10.8 Monthly**
Beer0.40.30.36.2 Monthly
Tobacco0.80.7-0.24.1 Monthly
Garments for men1.31.7-2.42.3 Monthly**
Garments for women-0.33.7-4.5-4.0 Monthly**
Garments for infant & childimp7.9imp7.0 Quarterly
Footwear for menimp-1.6imp-0.3 Quarterly
Footwear for womenimp2.6imp-1.5 Quarterly
Footwear for infant & childimp1.6imp-0.8 Quarterly
Accessoriesimp-2.2imp0.0 Quarterly
Cleaning, repair & hireimp1.5imp6.1 Quarterly
Rents0.50.80.86.3 Monthly**
New dwelling purchase by owner occupiers0.20.50.48.3 Monthly**
Maintenance & repair of dwelling imp0.8imp5.7 Quarterly
Property rates and charges0.0impimp3.6 Quarterly***
Water and sewerage0.9impimp1.4 Quarterly
Electricity-0.1-0.9-0.814.1 Monthly
Gas and other household fuels 14.3impimp26.3 Quarterly
Furnitureimp4.9imp6.9 Quarterly
Carpets & other floor coverimp0.7imp10.3 Quarterly
Household textilesimp9.5imp4.3 Quarterly
Major household appliancesimp-0.4imp-1.4 Quarterly
Small electronic household appliancesimp1.0imp-1.1 Quarterly
Glassware, tableware & householdimp1.6imp4.1 Quarterly
Tools & equipmentimp1.3imp4.2 Quarterly
Cleaning & maintenance products0.5-0.20.88.9 Monthly
Personal care products0.40.00.36.7 Monthly
Other non-durable household products0.3-0.20.67.4 Monthly
Child care2.0impimp5.9 Quarterly
Hairdressing & personal groomingimpimp2.27.1 Quarterly
Other household servicesimpimp-0.56.6 Quarterly
Pharmaceutical products4.6impimp1.5 Quarterly
Therapeutic appliances and equipment0.4impimp1.9 Quarterly
Medical & hospital services2.40.2imp5.8 Quarterly***
Dental services0.8impimp3.7 Quarterly
Motor vehicles1.8impimp6.0 Quarterly
Spare parts & accessories impimp2.511.6 Quarterly
Automotive fuel-2.22.9-6.7-8.0 Monthly
Maintenance & repair of vehicleimpimp0.54.2 Quarterly
Other services in respect of motor vehicleimpimp0.22.7 Quarterly
Urban transport faresimpimp0.08.0 Quarterly
Postal services5.5-0.91.39.0 Monthly
Telecommunications equip & services-0.2-0.70.80.8 Quarterly*
Audio, visual & computer equipment-0.8-0.10.20.7 Quarterly*
Audio, visual, media & servicesimpimp0.54.0 Quarterly
Books3.8impimp-0.8 Quarterly
Newspaper magazine & stationery0.0impimp8.5 Quarterly
Domestic holiday travel & accommodation1.16.1-15.510.3 Monthly
International holiday travel & accommodation2.38.6-4.715.2 Monthly
Equipment for sports, camping & recreation impimp-0.25.0 Quarterly
Games, toys and hobbiesimpimp-0.23.4 Quarterly
Pets and related products0.7-0.8-0.69.4 Monthly
Veterinary and other services for pets 1.5impimp8.1 Quarterly
Sports participation-0.8imp1.74.6 Quarterly
Other recreational sports & cultural servicesimpimp1.72.0 Quarterly
Preschool & primary education-0.1imp0.0-0.2 Quarterly***
Secondary education impimp0.04.9 Quarterly***
Tertiary education impimp0.09.6 Quarterly***
Insuranceimpimp5.314.2 Quarterly
D&L Facilities 1.60.10.11.8 Monthly
Other financial services1.5impimp6.6 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.

Appendix

Annual weight update

Index

2022

weight (%)

2021

weight (%)

Points

Change

Food and non-alcoholic beverages group17.1816.760.42
   Bread0.530.530.00
   Cakes and biscuits0.600.61-0.01
   Breakfast cereals0.110.12-0.01
   Other cereal products0.180.170.01
   Beef and veal0.530.54-0.01
   Pork0.290.32-0.03
   Lamb and goat0.290.31-0.02
   Poultry0.440.45-0.01
   Other meats0.380.39-0.01
   Fish and other seafood0.400.44-0.04
   Milk0.420.400.02
   Cheese0.300.32-0.02
   Ice cream and other dairy0.290.290.00
   Fruit0.961.00-0.04
   Vegetables1.411.310.10
   Eggs0.120.13-0.01
   Jams, honey and spreads0.120.13-0.01
   Food additives & condiments0.310.300.01
   Oils and fats0.220.200.02
   Snacks and confectionery0.830.84-0.01
   Other food products0.490.51-0.02
   Coffee, tea and cocoa0.260.240.02
   Waters soft drinks and juices0.890.860.03
   Restaurant meals3.963.420.54
   Takeaway and fast foods2.852.93-0.08
Alcohol and tobacco group7.879.01-1.14
   Spirits0.991.03-0.04
   Wine1.912.06-0.15
   Beer2.222.36-0.14
   Tobacco2.753.56-0.81
Clothing and footwear group3.373.330.04
   Garments for men0.530.54-0.01
   Garments for women1.131.130.00
   Garments for children0.320.320.00
   Footwear for men0.120.120.00
   Footwear for women0.290.290.00
   Footwear for children0.070.08-0.01
   Accessories0.840.740.10
   Cleaning, repair and hire0.070.11-0.04
Housing group22.2423.24-1.00
   Rents5.756.23-0.48
   New dwelling purchase8.628.67-0.05
   Maintenance and repair of dwelling2.242.29-0.05
   Property rates and charges1.551.61-0.06
   Water and sewerage0.880.95-0.07
   Electricity2.222.52-0.30
   Gas and other household fuels0.980.970.01
Furnishings, household equipment & services group8.949.16-0.22
   Furniture1.541.63-0.09
   Carpets and other floor cover0.320.34-0.02
   Household textiles0.510.500.01
   Major household appliances0.430.44-0.01
   Small electrical appliances0.320.33-0.01
   Glassware and tableware0.410.42-0.01
   Tools and equipment0.400.41-0.01
   Cleaning and maintenance products0.230.230.00
   Personal care products0.890.890.00
   Other non-durable products1.311.260.05
   Child care0.820.91-0.09
   Hairdressing services1.081.060.02
   Other household services0.680.74-0.06
Health group6.256.47-0.22
   Pharmaceutical products1.041.09-0.05
   Therapeutic equipment0.160.160.00
   Medical and hospital services4.454.56-0.11
   Dental services0.600.66-0.06
Transport group10.9910.580.41
   Motor vehicles3.043.06-0.02
   Spare parts and accessories0.770.700.07
   Automotive fuel3.613.280.33
   Maintenance and repair of vehicle1.871.780.09
   Other motor vehicle services1.351.40-0.05
   Urban transport fares0.350.36-0.01
Communication group2.312.41-0.10
   Postal services0.100.11-0.01
   Telecommunications2.212.30-0.09
Recreation and culture group10.848.642.20
   Audio, visual and computer equipment1.281.35-0.07
   Audio, visual and media services0.670.70-0.03
   Books0.160.18-0.02
   Newspapers, magazines and stationery0.370.40-0.03
   Domestic holiday travel2.431.950.48
   International holiday travel1.850.081.77
   Equipment for sports and camping0.610.70-0.09
   Games, toys and hobbies0.640.69-0.05
   Pets and related products0.530.500.03
   Vet and other pet services0.510.440.07
   Sports participation0.900.750.15
   Other recreational services0.890.90-0.01
Education group4.434.63-0.2
   Preschool and primary education0.950.99-0.04
   Secondary education1.912.01-0.10
   Tertiary education1.571.63-0.06
Insurance and financial services group5.565.80-0.24
   Insurance1.161.23-0.07
   Bank fees (direct)0.400.46-0.06
   Other financial services4.004.11-0.11

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
Cleaning, repair & hire Cleaning & maintenance prod Gas and other household fuels
Rents Personal care products Cleaning & maintenance prod
New dwelling purchase by owner occupiers Other non-dur household prods Personal care products
Maintenance & repair of dwelling Hairdressing & personal grooming Other non-dur household prods
Electricity Other household services Child care
Furniture Spare parts & accessories Pharmaceutical products
Carpets & other floor cover Automotive fuel Therapeutic appliances and equipment
Household textiles Maintenance & repair of vehicle Medical & hospital services
Major household appliances Other services in respect of motor vehicle     Medical services
Small electronic household appliances Urban transport fares Dental services
Glassware, tableware & household Postal services Motor vehicles
Tools & equipment Telecommunications equip & services (partial monthly) Automotive fuel
Cleaning & maintenance prod Audio,visual & computer equipment Postal services
Personal care products Audio, visual, media & services Telecommunications equip & services (partial monthly)
Other non-durable household prods Domestic holiday travel & accommodation Audio,visual & computer equipment
Medical & hospital services International holiday travel & accommodation Books
    Private Health insurance (annual, plus irregular changes) Equipment for sports,camp Newspaper magazine & stationery
Automotive fuel Games, toys and hobbies Domestic holiday travel & accommodation
Postal services Pets and related products International holiday travel & accommodation
Telecommunications equip & services (partial monthly) Sports participation Pets and related products
Audio,visual & computer equipment Other recreational sports & cultural services Vet & other pet services
Domestic holiday travel & accommodation Preschool & primary education (quarterly & annual) Sports participation
International holiday travel & accommodation Secondary education (annual) Preschool & primary education (quarterly & annual)
Pets and related products Tertiary education (bi-annual) D&L Facilities (direct)
D&L Facilities (direct) Insurance Other financial services
  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:

  1. 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.
  2. 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

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.

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