The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has just released Producer Price Index (PPI) data for the June quarter, which has registered a 0.5% quarterly rise in final (stage 3) prices and an increase of only 1.1% over the year:
The 0.5% rise in final (stage 3) prices was driven primarily by rises in the prices received for other agriculture (+10.9%), petroleum refining (+4.3%) and other manufacturing (+2.4%), partly offset by falls in the prices received for commercial fishing (-12.2%) and accommodation (-5.6%).
The below chart shows the quarterly change in final PPI by component since 2005:
And below is a time-series of final PPI dating back to the beginning of the series. Note the huge fall in imported costs reflecting the steady appreciation of the Australian dollar:
The June quarter PPI result confirms the view that inflationary pressures remain subdued across the Australian economy. We now await Wednesday’s Consumer Price Index release for further confirmation.
Twitter: Leith van Onselen. Leith is the Chief Economist of Macro Investor, Australia’s independent investment newsletter covering trades, stocks, property and yield. Click for a free 21 day trial.
