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The Soaring Bills Of Australian Households. (Read 183 times)
imcrookonit
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The Soaring Bills Of Australian Households.
Oct 28th, 2010 at 7:13am
 
   
 

MELBOURNE has the nation's highest inflation rate: 3.1 per cent.

In the past year households have been hit with a 20 per cent rise in electricity bills, water and sewerage charges are up 17 per cent, childcare has risen 9.4 per cent and property rates and charges are up 8 per cent.

Smokers have seen the cost of lighting up rise 24.5 per cent up as a result of the Federal Government's mid-year tax rise, and a beer costs 6.5 per cent more.

The overall shopping basket of food costs 1.3 per cent more but there are great variations in prices.

If you like beef you are paying 4.4 per cent more than September last year but pork is 4.9 per cent cheaper.

Milk costs more and bread costs less, while eating out is more expensive.

The higher dollar has made clothing much cheaper, with men and women saving close to 6 per cent on last year's prices. However, while women's underwear has fallen by 8.7 per cent, men are paying 3.6 per cent more for their socks and jocks.


Treasurer Wayne Swan admitted the Consumer Price Index published by the Bureau of Statistics showed "many Australians are still doing it tough" especially because of high electricity, gas and water bills, which Mr Swan said were "putting further pressures on family budgets".

But he said the Government had tried to help households by giving tax cuts in the past three years, boosting childcare assistance and paying more to pensioners.

Election promises to cover part of the cost of buying school uniforms and to pay a higher family tax benefit to parents with 16 and 17-year-olds would also help.

The national inflation rate was lower than expected at 2.8 per cent, while in Sydney it was 2.6 per cent and Canberra had the lowest at 2.1 per cent.

Mr Swan was buoyed that the underlying rate - used by the Reserve Bank to consider interest rates - was at a five-year low of 2.4 per cent.

Economists said that could mean the Reserve Bank would keep interest rates on hold when it met on Melbourne Cup day.

"The Reserve Bank will be hard pressed to justify a rate hike next week," said CommSec chief economist Craig James.



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