Import & export prices
- Prices of imported goods slumped by 3.8 per cent in the December quarter, driven largely by the appreciation of the Australian dollar. Import prices are 1.0 per cent lower than a year ago.
- Import prices were at record lows across a whole host of products including computers, mobile phones, leather & travel goods, and paper products and electrical equipment.
- The index of imported electrical appliances fell by 7.9 per cent in the quarter – marking the biggest quarterly fall in records going back 23 years. Similarly imported food prices have fallen by almost 20 per
cent in the past two years. - Prices of export goods fell by 8.1 per cent in the December quarter. However export prices are still 19.0 per cent higher than a year ago.
- The data on import and export prices suggest that the broader terms of trade may have fallen by around 2 per cent in the December quarter.
