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Australia consumer prices rise 0.5% in September quarter
Consumer prices edged 0.5 per cent higher in the September quarter, as rises in the cost of fruit, houses, property rates, and vehicle charges were offset by falls in electricity and petrol. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) reading for the three months to the end of September leaves the 12-month inflation rate at 2.3 per cent, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The quarterly figure is slightly higher than the median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists. They expected the quarterly growth rate to be 0.4 per cent, and the annual inflation rate, 2.3 per cent. This compares with 0.5 per cent and 3 ... (full story)