Australia’s consumer price index (CPI) increased by 1.2 per cent in the September quarter compared to the previous quarter, slightly surpassing economists’ expectations, with an annualised CPI rise of 5.4 per cent in July-September, slightly higher than expected but lower than the previous quarter, while the core CPI also rose by 1.2 per cent for the quarter, exceeding forecasts, and in annual terms, core inflation reached 5.2 per cent, slightly above the predicted 5 per cent.
The S&P/ASX 200 is trading 0.07 per cent lower at 6,852.40.
Futures
The SPI futures are up 7 points.
Best and worst performers
The best-performing sector is Materials, up 1.51 per cent. The worst-performing sector is REITs, down 1.63 per cent.
The best-performing large cap is Lynas Rare Earths (ASX:LYC), trading 4.33 per cent higher at $7.12. It is followed by shares in Mineral Resources (ASX:MIN) and Allkem (ASX:AKE).
The worst-performing large cap is Infratil (ASX:IFT), trading 3.6 per cent lower at $9.11. It is followed by shares in Woolworths Group (ASX:WOW) and ResMed (ASX:RMD).
Asian markets
Japan’s Nikkei has gained 1.30 per cent.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng has gained 2.48 per cent.
China’s Shanghai Composite has gained 0.93 per cent.
Commodities and the dollar
Gold is trading at US$1,983.20 an ounce.
Light crude is trading $0.10 lower at US$83.64 a barrel.
One Australian dollar is buying 63.83 US cents.