Petrol cost climb and rising rent pushes New Zealand inflation up

The cost of petrol was up for the June quarter.
The cost of petrol was up for the June quarter. Photo credit: Getty

The rising cost of petrol and rent pushed inflation up 0.6 percent for the June quarter, according to Stats NZ.

The inflation rate for the year to June was 1.7 percent, up from 1.5 percent in the March 2019 year. 

Petrol prices were up 5.8 percent in the June 2019 quarter, with the average price of 91 octane for the quarter $2.13 a litre. That was up from an average of $2.01 in the previous quarter.

Despite the general rise in petrol prices, the at-pump price last week was 2 percent lower than the June quarter average. 

"Petrol prices rose slowly over the first part of the quarter, reaching a peak in late May and then falling," says prices senior manager Paul Pascoe.

"By the last week of June, the petrol pump price was 2.0 percent lower than the June quarter average."

Despite the rise in petrol prices, the cost of other transport-related items fell, with lower costs for second-hand cars, domestic rental cars and rental cars offsetting the rise in petrol prices.

As well as higher petrol prices, there was also a rise in housing costs, with rent rising 1.0 percent in the June quarter, for an increase of 2.5 percent over the year. 

With a 1.4 percent quarterly increase and a 3.8 percent increase over the year, Wellington topped the list for increasing rent prices. 

This was followed by Auckland, with a 0.6 percent quarterly increase and a 2.0 percent annual increase, and Canterbury with a 0.5 percent increase over the quarter and a 0.9 percent increase for the year.

Newshub.