Inflation in Australia declines weaker than expected
2023.03.07 03:01
Inflation in Australia declines weaker than expected
By Ray Johnson
Budrigannews.com – Tuesday, Australia’s leading grocery store said that while the rate of food inflation was beginning to fall, prices were taking longer than anticipated to fall from their pandemic highs.
According to Brad Banducci, the chief executive officer of Woolworths Group Ltd., while price increases were slowing for some goods, such as vegetables, which are now “deflationary,” prices were falling elsewhere more slowly or not at all.
Banducci stated on Tuesday at the Australian Financial Review business summit in Sydney, “We’ve seen food inflation in aggregate come down but much more slowly than anyone anticipated.”
The December quarter saw a 9.2% increase in food inflation over the previous year, the highest level since 2006. Prices for vegetables increased by 5.7% during the same time period, down from a reading of 17.2% in the September quarter.
The Reserve Bank of Australia raised its cash rate to its highest level in more than a decade on Tuesday in response to stubborn inflation. However, the central bank suggested that consumer spending slowing might mean it was almost done tightening.
Banducci stated that lower freight rates would aid in price reductions, adding that Woolworths had recently negotiated new freight agreements.
