Advertisement
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released monthly CPI inflation data for February, which obviously pre-dates the Middle Eastern energy shock.
As illustrated below by Alex Joiner, chief economist at IFM Investors, headline CPI inflation rose by 3.7% in the 12 months to February 2026, down slightly from 3.8% in January.
The largest contributor to annual inflation in February was housing, which rose by 7.2%. This was followed by a 3.1% rise in food and non-alcoholic beverages and a 4.1% rise in recreation and culture.
Advertisement
The full text of this article is available to MacroBusiness subscribers
Cancel at any time through our billing provider, Stripe
About the author
Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness.
Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.