Data Driven Storytelling Studio · Team Misery
Why do bills
still feel high?
Australia’s inflation through
household costs
Overall CPI+29.1%
Eggs+51.9%
Cumulative price change · March 2019–June 2026
Overall CPIEggs
Hover across the lines to inspect each quarter
A national average can conceal different household pressures
The human problem
The same headline.
Different responsibilities.
RANALYST
Ruce Banner
A briefing that holds up
when challenged
Which measure answers
the household question?
PPOLITICIAN
Pete Park
An explanation that respects
constituents’ experience
Which households face pressure,
and what needs investigation?
01 · Rate versus level
Slower inflation.
Prices still higher.
02 · Inside the weekly shop
Eggs rose faster than the average
March 2019–June 2026 · Different paths, one common comparison period
CPIEggsMilkPoultry
Poultry rose less than CPI. Individual items move differently.
03 · Household costs through time
One headline.
Different cost increases.
Overall CPIEmployee householdsAge pensioner households
04 · Why the measures differ
Mortgage interest
changes the picture
| Housing cost | CPI | Living cost indexes |
|---|
| Rent | Included | Included |
|---|
| New dwelling purchases, excluding land | Included | Excluded |
|---|
| Mortgage interest | Excluded | Included |
|---|
| Mortgage principal repayments | Excluded | Excluded |
|---|
CPI measures acquisition prices.
Living cost indexes measure household outlays.
05 · The room left in the budget
Essentials take more of a smaller budget
Two illustrative annual budgets constructed from published averages
EssentialsOther allocation
$40,000 budget$150,000 budget
Housing + groceries + transport + electricityEssentials: $25,413 / $37,823
Illustrative examples, not measured expenditure by matched households
The evidence changes their next steps
A headline needs
household context
RUCE’S BRIEFING
The relevant
household measure
Pair CPI with a household index.
State its source, period and limits.
PETE’S RESPONSE
The households
under pressure
Explain the differences.
Investigate a targeted response.
CPI describes average price change.
Household evidence helps explain the pressure.
Donghyun Kang, Inyou Jeon, Song Xie, Yuxuan Wang, Degeng Fu, Joshua Weir, Dhruv Chetan Shah