Consumer prices have risen by 1.6 per cent from the June quarter to the September quarter, driven by the end of temporary free childcare and higher petrol prices.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics said the Consumer Price Index rose 0.7 per cent over the year to the end of September.
Over the June quarter, prices went backwards, known as deflation, with the CPI slumping by 1.9 per cent after the Federal Government temporarily made childcare free to help families survive the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
It was the biggest quarterly fall in the 72-year history of the index as childcare prices dropped by 95 per cent.
Childcare was the most significant price rise in the CPI from June to September, rising by 0.9 per cent after free childcare ended on July 13.
Read more: Sue Lannin and Rachel Pupazzoni
