[1] "Available columns: ...1, Time Series Workbook, ...3, ...4, ...5, ...6, ...7, ...8, ...9, ...10, ...11, ...12"Australia has experienced significant inflation in recent years, creating a cost of living crisis for many households. This storyboard explores inflation trends, their causes, and their impacts on different aspects of daily life.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures changes in the price level of a basket of consumer goods and services. As shown in the chart, Australia’s inflation remained relatively stable between 2015 and 2021, before accelerating dramatically from 2022 to 2023.
Key points: - After years of low inflation averaging around 1.5-2% annually, prices surged in 2022-2023 - The COVID-19 pandemic initially suppressed inflation but created conditions for later price increases - Recent data shows inflation beginning to moderate but still above pre-pandemic levels
Not all sectors of the economy experience inflation equally. This visualization shows how price increases have varied across different categories of consumer spending.
Housing & Utilities has consistently been the largest contributor to inflation, with shelter costs (both rent and home purchase) rising sharply alongside energy prices. These costs represent a significant portion of household budgets, making their rise particularly impactful.
Food & Non-alcoholic Beverages has also seen substantial price increases, affected by weather events, supply chain disruptions, and rising input costs. As essential spending, these increases are felt by all households but disproportionately impact those with lower incomes.
Transport costs have been volatile, driven largely by global oil prices and vehicle costs.
Categories like Education and Recreation & Culture have generally seen more moderate inflation, though education costs have risen steadily over time regardless of economic conditions.
Housing costs represent the single largest expense for most Australian households, making them central to the cost of living crisis. These charts highlight two key aspects of housing affordability:
Housing Price to Income Ratio shows how many years of median household income are needed to purchase a median-priced home. This ratio has climbed steadily since 2010, with a sharp acceleration in 2022-2023, indicating housing becoming increasingly unaffordable relative to incomes.
Mortgage Payments as Percentage of Income reveals a more complex story: - From 2010-2021, declining interest rates kept mortgage payments relatively stable or declining as a percentage of income, despite rising house prices - From 2022 onwards, rapid interest rate increases caused mortgage payments to surge dramatically for existing homeowners with variable rate loans - This represented the fastest increase in mortgage costs in decades, creating significant financial stress
The combination of high house prices and rising interest rates has created a “double squeeze” on housing affordability, affecting both aspiring homeowners and existing mortgage holders.
Food price inflation has been a significant contributor to the cost of living crisis. This visualization reveals the different inflation patterns across food categories since 2020.
Key insights:
Fruit & Vegetables show the highest volatility, with sharp spikes reflecting their sensitivity to weather events, labor availability, and transportation costs. Extreme weather events in 2022 caused significant price increases.
Bread & Cereals experienced a dramatic price surge in mid-2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which disrupted global grain markets. Australia, while a grain producer, is still affected by global market prices.
Dairy products had a delayed inflation response, with prices rising most sharply in 2023 as increased production costs (feed, energy, labor) were finally passed on to consumers.
Meat & Seafood saw sustained price increases from 2021 through 2023, driven by supply chain disruptions, high feed costs, and labor shortages in processing facilities.
Food price inflation has had a disproportionate impact on lower-income households, who typically spend a higher percentage of their budget on food. While prices began moderating in 2024, they remain significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels.
The cost of living crisis has not affected all regions equally. This heatmap shows how inflation rates have varied across Australia’s capital cities from 2020 to 2025.
Geographic patterns:
Hobart and Brisbane have consistently experienced higher inflation rates, particularly during the peak inflation period of 2022-2023.
Melbourne and Darwin generally recorded lower inflation compared to other capital cities.
All regions followed a similar pattern of low inflation in 2020, moderate increases in 2021, a significant spike in 2022, followed by gradual moderation through 2025.
These regional differences reflect varied economic structures, housing market dynamics, and transportation costs:
These regional disparities highlight how the experience of inflation can vary significantly depending on location, even within the same country.
Perhaps the most critical dimension of the cost of living crisis is the relationship between wage growth and inflation. When prices rise faster than wages, living standards effectively decline.
The top chart compares annual wage growth with inflation. Key observations:
The bottom chart shows real wage growth (wage growth minus inflation):
The sustained period of negative real wage growth from 2021-2023 represents the core of the cost of living crisis. During this period, average Australian workers experienced declining purchasing power for the longest stretch since the 1990s.
This wage-price gap particularly affected workers in sectors with less bargaining power and those on fixed incomes such as pensioners. Even as inflation moderated in 2024-2025, the cumulative impact of these years of negative real wage growth continues to be felt by many households.
As Australia looks ahead, what does the future hold for inflation and the cost of living?
This chart shows historical quarterly inflation data through Q1 2025, with forecasts extending through 2026. The gray band represents the Reserve Bank of Australia’s target inflation range of 2-3% annually (approximately 0.5-0.75% quarterly).
Key projections:
Several factors support this outlook:
However, significant risks remain, including geopolitical tensions affecting energy and food prices, potential wage-price spirals, and climate-related disruptions to agriculture.
While inflation may normalize, many households will continue feeling the impacts of the cost of living crisis, as prices remain at elevated levels even if they’re rising more slowly.
The cost of living crisis has not affected all Australians equally. This visualization highlights how different household types have experienced varying levels of impact from inflation.
Most affected groups:
Low-Income Households face the highest impact, as they spend a larger proportion of their income on essentials like food and energy, which have seen significant price increases.
Renters have been severely affected by the sharp rise in rental costs, especially in major cities where vacancy rates have reached record lows.
Pensioners are particularly vulnerable as they live on fixed incomes that have not kept pace with inflation, while facing rising healthcare and energy costs.
Mortgage Holders who purchased at low interest rates have experienced dramatic increases in repayments as interest rates rose rapidly from 2022 onwards.
Less affected groups:
High-Income Households have generally been more insulated, as they spend a smaller proportion of their income on essentials and have greater financial buffers.
Outright Homeowners (without mortgages) have avoided the impact of rising interest rates, though they still face increases in energy costs and council rates.
These disparities highlight how inflation can exacerbate existing inequalities, with the greatest burden falling on those who were already financially vulnerable before the crisis began.
Addressing the cost of living crisis requires a multi-faceted policy approach. This chart evaluates various policy responses based on their effectiveness in both the short and long term.
Short-term relief measures: - Energy Rebates and Income Support provide immediate relief to struggling households - Pension Increases help vulnerable older Australians on fixed incomes - Monetary Policy (interest rate adjustments) works relatively quickly to reduce demand-driven inflation
Long-term structural solutions: - Housing Supply initiatives have minimal immediate impact but are crucial for long-term affordability - Competition Policy reforms address market concentration that can drive price increases - Childcare Subsidies provide both immediate relief and long-term economic benefits through workforce participation
The most effective policy approach combines targeted immediate relief for vulnerable groups with structural reforms addressing underlying affordability issues. This balanced approach recognizes that while short-term measures are necessary for households struggling now, they must be complemented by longer-term solutions to prevent recurring crises.
Policy makers face the challenge of balancing inflation control through monetary policy while protecting vulnerable households from its impacts, all while addressing the structural issues that have contributed to the crisis.
This visualization uses data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics Consumer Price Index and Wage Price Index series. All inflation figures represent annual percentage changes unless otherwise noted. Regional comparisons use capital city CPI figures. Housing affordability metrics are derived from ABS housing data and AHURI research. The impact assessment by household type is based on ABS Household Expenditure Survey data combined with category-specific inflation rates.
Created for MATH2237/MATH2270 Assessment 3 - Storytelling with Open Data
© 2025 [Student Name] (Student ID). All rights reserved.
This storyboard was created using open data from several authoritative sources, primarily the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Consumer Price Index data series.
Methodological approach:
Data selection: We focused on the most recent CPI data (through Q1 2025) and related economic indicators to provide a comprehensive view of Australia’s inflation situation.
Visualization choices: Each visualization was designed to highlight specific aspects of the cost of living crisis:
Story structure: The narrative flows from establishing the broad inflation trend to examining specific categories, impacts on different groups, and potential policy responses.
This analysis focused particularly on the rapid inflation acceleration of 2022-2023 and its impacts across different sectors of the economy and population groups. By combining CPI data with other economic indicators, we’ve provided context for understanding the broader cost of living crisis beyond headline inflation figures.
For the most current data, readers are encouraged to visit the Australian Bureau of Statistics website at abs.gov.au.