Australian Q4 CPI rises 0.2 pct

SYDNEY, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- The Australian consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.2 percent in the December quarter 2012, after a rise of 1.4 percent in the September quarter, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported on Wednesday.

The official CPI figure came in lower than expected, taking the annual inflation rate for 2012 to 2.2 percent.

Economists had forecast a rise of 0.5 percent in the December quarter and an annual rate of 2.5 percent.

The ABS said the most significant price rises in the December quarter 2012 were for domestic holiday travel and accommodation, automotive fuel and rents, while the most significant offsetting price falls were for vegetables, audio, visual and computing equipment and pharmaceutical products.

The Reserve Bank of Australia has a target range for annual inflation of 2 percent to 3 percent, and the latest figures will inform its interest rate decision on February 5.

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