The monthly Consumer Price Index (CPI) indicator rose 2.5 per cent in the 12 months to January 2025, according to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Michelle Marquardt, ABS head of prices statistics, said: 'Annual CPI inflation at 2.5 per cent in January was the same as it was in December 2024.'
The largest contributors to the annual movement were Food and non-alcoholic beverages (+3.3 per cent), Housing (+2.1 per cent), and Alcohol and tobacco (+6.4 per cent).
When prices for some items change significantly, measures of underlying inflation (like the annual trimmed mean and CPI excluding volatile items and holiday travel) can give more insights into how inflation is trending.
'Annual trimmed mean inflation was 2.8 per cent in January, up slightly from 2.7 per cent in December,' Ms Marquardt said.
'The CPI excluding volatile items and holiday travel measure rose 2.9 per cent in the 12 months to January, compared to a 2.7 per cent rise in the 12 months to December.'
| Monthly CPI indicator (%) | Monthly CPI excluding volatile items* & holiday travel (%) | Annual trimmed mean (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan-21 | 0.4 | 1.9 | 1.4 |
| Feb-21 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 1.1 |
| Mar-21 | 0.8 | 1.1 | 0.9 |
| Apr-21 | 2.5 | 2.1 | 0.9 |
| May-21 | 3.3 | 3.0 | 1.5 |
| Jun-21 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 1.5 |
| Jul-21 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 1.6 |
| Aug-21 | 2.5 | 2.6 | 2.0 |
| Sep-21 | 3.1 | 2.5 | 2.3 |
| Oct-21 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 2.3 |
| Nov-21 | 3.2 | 2.2 | 2.3 |
| Dec-21 | 3.5 | 2.9 | 2.7 |
| Jan-22 | 4.0 | 3.1 | 3.1 |
| Feb-22 | 4.9 | 4.1 | 3.4 |
| Mar-22 | 5.7 | 4.4 | 3.7 |
| Apr-22 | 5.5 | 4.9 | 4.0 |
| May-22 | 6.1 | 5.2 | 4.3 |
| Jun-22 | 6.8 | 5.5 | 4.5 |
| Jul-22 | 7.2 | 6.2 | 5.4 |
| Aug-22 | 7.2 | 6.6 | 5.9 |
| Sep-22 | 7.2 | 6.6 | 6.1 |
| Oct-22 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 6.1 |
| Nov-22 | 7.4 | 7.1 | 6.6 |
| Dec-22 | 8.4 | 7.2 | 7.2 |
| Jan-23 | 7.5 | 6.9 | 6.5 |
| Feb-23 | 6.8 | 6.8 | 6.5 |
| Mar-23 | 6.3 | 6.9 | 6.5 |
| Apr-23 | 6.7 | 6.5 | 6.7 |
| May-23 | 5.5 | 6.4 | 6.1 |
| Jun-23 | 5.4 | 6.1 | 6.0 |
| Jul-23 | 4.9 | 5.8 | 5.6 |
| Aug-23 | 5.2 | 5.5 | 5.6 |
| Sep-23 | 5.6 | 5.5 | 5.4 |
| Oct-23 | 4.9 | 5.1 | 5.3 |
| Nov-23 | 4.3 | 4.8 | 4.6 |
| Dec-23 | 3.4 | 4.2 | 4.0 |
| Jan-24 | 3.4 | 4.1 | 3.8 |
| Feb-24 | 3.4 | 3.9 | 3.9 |
| Mar-24 | 3.5 | 4.1 | 4.0 |
| Apr-24 | 3.6 | 4.1 | 4.1 |
| May-24 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.4 |
| Jun-24 | 3.8 | 4.0 | 4.1 |
| Jul-24 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 3.8 |
| Aug-24 | 2.7 | 3.0 | 3.4 |
| Sep-24 | 2.1 | 2.7 | 3.2 |
| Oct-24 | 2.1 | 2.4 | 3.5 |
| Nov-24 | 2.3 | 2.8 | 3.2 |
| Dec-24 | 2.5 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| Jan-25 | 2.5 | 2.9 | 2.8 |
*Volatile items are Fruit and vegetables and Automotive fuel
Food and non-alcoholic beverages prices rose 3.3 per cent in the 12 months to January, up from a rise of 2.7 per cent to December.
The increase in annual food inflation was mainly driven by Fruit, with prices 12.3 per cent higher compared to 12 months ago. Berry prices remain elevated following poor growing conditions in mid-2024. Prices for avocadoes, mangoes and citrus fruit have risen recently due to lower supply during the summer growing season.
| September (%) | October (%) | November (%) | December (%) | January (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Food and non-alcoholic beverages | 3.3 | 3.3 | 2.9 | 2.7 | 3.3 |
| Bread and cereal products | 1.8 | 3.0 | 2.7 | 2.2 | 3.0 |
| Meat and seafoods | 0.9 | 1.3 | 2.4 | 4.0 | 4.7 |
| Dairy and related products | -0.2 | -1.8 | -0.9 | -0.9 | -0.4 |
| Fruit and vegetables | 9.1 | 8.5 | 6.0 | 4.5 | 7.0 |
| Food products n.e.c. | 4.1 | 3.8 | 3.3 | 2.9 | 3.1 |
| Non-alcoholic beverages | 3.9 | 4.7 | 3.6 | 3.1 | 2.7 |
The Housing group rose 2.1 per cent in the 12 months to January, up from a 1.5 per cent annual rise to December.
Rents rose 5.8 per cent in the 12 months to January, following a 6.2 per cent rise to December, with easing rental price growth reflecting recent increases in vacancy rates across most capital cities.
New dwelling price rises slowed to 2.0 per cent in the 12 months to January, following a 2.3 per cent rise in the 12 months to December. This is the lowest annual rise in new dwelling prices since June 2021.
The slowing in annual new dwellings inflation is due to project home builders offering discounts and promotional offers to entice business, as well as improvements in the supply of materials and labour.
Most of the increase in annual inflation for the Housing group to January was caused by increases in electricity prices for those Queensland households that had used up the Queensland State government electricity rebates.
'Electricity rebates lower the price of electricity for households. The Queensland government introduced a one-off electricity rebate of $1,000 from July 2024. This rebate exceeded the average electricity bill for Queensland households. The impact of the rebates was lower in January than December as some households had exhausted the full value of the rebate.' Ms Marquardt said.
Compared to 12 months ago, electricity prices were 11.5 per cent lower in January, a smaller decrease than for the year to December 2024 (-17.9 per cent). Excluding all Commonwealth and State government rebates, electricity prices would have fallen 1.2 per cent in the 12 months to January 2025 compared to an annual fall of 0.9 per cent to December 2024.
| Monthly (%) | Annual (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan-24 | 0.9 | 0.8 |
| Feb-24 | -0.6 | 0.3 |
| Mar-24 | 4.8 | 5.2 |
| Apr-24 | -1.9 | 4.2 |
| May-24 | 1.4 | 6.5 |
| Jun-24 | 0.1 | 7.5 |
| Jul-24 | -6.4 | -5.1 |
| Aug-24 | -14.6 | -17.9 |
| Sep-24 | -7.4 | -24.1 |
| Oct-24 | -12.3 | -35.6 |
| Nov-24 | 22.4 | -21.5 |
| Dec-24 | -1.5 | -17.9 |
| Jan-25 | 8.9 | -11.5 |
Automotive fuel prices fell 1.9 per cent in the 12 months to January, following a 1.4 per cent annual fall to December.
In monthly terms, Automotive fuel prices fell 1.4 per cent in January, the first monthly fall since October 2024.
