[zaph]

Quote

AUSTRALIA'S consumer price index was unchanged in the fourth quarter of 2011 from the third quarter and rose 3.1 per cent from a year earlier, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said today. Economists on average had expected the CPI to rise 0.2 per cent from the previous quarter and rise 3.3 per cent from a year earlier.

The weighted median core CPI rose 0.5 per cent in the fourth quarter from the third quarter and rose 2.6 per cent from a year earlier. The trimmed mean CPI rose 0.6 per cent in the fourth quarter from the third quarter and rose 2.6 per cent from a year earlier.

Economists had expected that an average of the two core measures of CPI rose 0.5 per cent from the previous quarter and rose 2.4 per cent from a year earlier.

Seasonally adjusted CPI rose 0.2 per cent on quarter and rose 3.0 per cent on year.

http://www.theaustra...6-1226253247540

OCR drop next month almost assured.

[cobran20]

ABS

Quote

DECEMBER KEY POINTS


THE ALL GROUPS CPI


was unchanged in the December quarter 2011, compared with a rise of 0.6% in the September quarter 2011.
rose 3.1% through the year to the December quarter 2011, compared with a rise of 3.5% through the year to the September quarter 2011.


OVERVIEW OF CPI MOVEMENTS

The most significant price rises this quarter were for domestic holiday travel and accommodation (+7.3%), rents (+1.0%), telecommunication equipment and services (+1.1%), beer (+1.2%) and automotive fuel (+0.7%).
The most significant price falls this quarter were for fruit (–13.4%), pharmaceutical products (–5.6%), vegetables (–5.0%), audio, visual and computing equipment (–3.4%), international holiday travel and accommodation (–1.9%) and motor vehicles (–1.2%).

[mattau]

so the question is.... shall i take unchanged CPIs are a positive thing? It is right?

[Mr Medved]

zaph, on 25 January 2012 - 01:04 AM, said:

OCR drop next month almost assured.

What's this weighted crap? Have they created a new CPI figure because the dodgy, fiddled, hedonic CPI figure doesn't provide for the figure they want?

The CPI movements posted above look like mainly seasonal movements.

Just to confirm - next RBA meeting on 7th, right?

[zaph]

Mr Medved, on 26 January 2012 - 11:45 PM, said:

What's this weighted crap? Have they created a new CPI figure because the dodgy, fiddled, hedonic CPI figure doesn't provide for the figure they want?

The CPI movements posted above look like mainly seasonal movements.

Just to confirm - next RBA meeting on 7th, right?

no idea what the weighted figure represents, but it's always been there.

yes 7th. first tuesday of every month except jan.

[wulfgar]

Wulfie's rule of thumb......take the CPI and multiply by say 1.75 to get the correct figure.

3.1 x 1.75 = 5.25%

[staringclown]

It must be getter harder and harder to massage the standard "basket of goods" (henceforth referred to as the official basketcase) to keep that CPI within the required range. RBA to the rescue!

[wim]

staringclown, on 27 January 2012 - 08:08 AM, said:

It must be getter harder and harder to massage the standard "basket of goods" (henceforth referred to as the official basketcase) to keep that CPI within the required range. RBA to the rescue!

Satyajit Das was saying on The Drum yesterday that the RBA was paying attention to mortgage stress and the banks were pushing that cost onto business loans. I went looking for a transcript but couldn't find one.

[staringclown]

wim, on 27 January 2012 - 09:56 AM, said:

Satyajit Das was saying on The Drum yesterday that the RBA was paying attention to mortgage stress and the banks were pushing that cost onto business loans. I went looking for a transcript but couldn't find one.

I saw that wim. The RBA will lower rates no doubt. Das was pretty gloomy on the Europe situation. My guess is the RBA has been often accused of lagging behind the market. So now they are trying to anticipate it.