International
Australia's Inflation Increases 4.6% in Year to March
Australia's consumer price index (CPI) rose 4.6% in the 12 months to March, up from a 3.7% increase in the year to February, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported Wednesday.The largest contributors to annual inflation were housing, up 6.5%, followed by transport, which rose 8.9%, and food and non-alcoholic beverages, which jumped 3.1%."Annual CPI inflation is the highest it's been since September 2023," said Sue-Ellen Luke, the bureau's head of prices statistics.Trimmed mean inflation was unchanged at 3.3% in the 12 months to March compared with February.Annual goods inflation rose to 5.5% in the year to March from 3.5% in February, while services inflation fell to 3.6% from 3.9%, per the report.Automotive fuel prices increased by nearly 33% between February and March, before the fuel excise was halved on April 1.Average fuel prices increased sharply from February to March, with regular unleaded rising by 33%, premium unleaded increasing by 30%, and diesel climbing by 41%."The increase in March is the largest monthly increase since the series began in 2017, reflecting the impact of the conflict in the Middle East on fuel prices," Luke added.The CPI increased by 1.4% over the quarter, while the trimmed mean rose by 0.8%.
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