Consumer dairy prices up 4.2%

The consumers price index (CPI) rose 0.1% in that quarter, Statistics New Zealand says. Higher international air fares and rising housing and dairy prices were partly countered by lower vegetable prices and cheaper petrol.

International air fares rose 12% in the December 2013 quarter – the highest quarterly rise since the December 2009 quarter.

Prices for housing and household utilities (up 0.5%) also rose, reflecting higher prices for property maintenance, purchase of newly built houses, and rentals for housing.

Vegetable prices (down 20%) fell in the December quarter, as they usually do. Prices for tomatoes, lettuce, and cucumber were about half what they had been in the previous quarter.

Petrol prices fell 3.5% in the December quarter after a 5.6% rise in the September quarter, when they peaked at their highest level – an average of $2.17 per litre for 91 octane. The average price in the December quarter was $2.09 per litre.

The CPI increased 1.6% the year to the December 2013 quarter. This is the highest annual rise since the March 2012 quarter.

Almost half of the increase came from housing and household utility prices, which increased 3.2%. There were increases across the board: purchase of newly built houses (up 4.7%), housing rentals (up 2.1%), property maintenance (up 4.3%), household energy (up 2.4%), and property rates and related services (up 4.1%).

The CPI measures the rate of price change of goods and services purchased by New Zealand households. Statistics NZ visits 3,000 shops across New Zealand to collect prices for the CPI and check product sizes and features.