Financial services keeps inflation low
As news spread that Australia’s inflation rate picked up in the last quarter – but only slightly – the financial and insurance services sector has been blamed for contributing to the low rate.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the consumer price index (CPI) rose 1.5% from a year earlier, and 0.5% for the quarter.
The major contributor to the 1.7% decrease in financial and insurance services was deposit and loan facilities (-4.3%), while other financial services (+0.1%) and insurance services (+1.3%) actually provided offsetting increases.
The bureau says a fall in the price of services charged by financial institutions includes prices derived from interest-rate margins.
“The impact on prices varied across the range of products covered in the CPI,” it said.
Over the 12 months to the June quarter, the financial and insurance services group fell 6.6%, driven by a 17.9% fall in deposit and loan facilities, and again offset by increases in insurance services (+9.0%) and other financial services (+2.6%).
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the consumer price index (CPI) rose 1.5% from a year earlier, and 0.5% for the quarter.
The major contributor to the 1.7% decrease in financial and insurance services was deposit and loan facilities (-4.3%), while other financial services (+0.1%) and insurance services (+1.3%) actually provided offsetting increases.
The bureau says a fall in the price of services charged by financial institutions includes prices derived from interest-rate margins.
“The impact on prices varied across the range of products covered in the CPI,” it said.
Over the 12 months to the June quarter, the financial and insurance services group fell 6.6%, driven by a 17.9% fall in deposit and loan facilities, and again offset by increases in insurance services (+9.0%) and other financial services (+2.6%).