Producer prices index
The Producer Price Index increased by only 0.4 per cent at final demand in the March 2026 quarter, according to the ABS, to be a fairly modest 3 per cent higher over the year.
Over the past half decade, however, the index for producer prices has already increased cumulatively by 38.2 per cent.
Source: ABS
Inputs to housing construction rose by 0.6 per cent in the March 2026 quarter.
This is merely the calm before the storm, however, and construction cost inputs are getting set to soar again after a relatively calmer period since June 2023.
Alex Joiner of IFM Investors charted the enormous increases in input prices since the pre-pandemic period.
Source: Alex Joiner, IFM Investors
Over the three decades from 1996, construction cost outputs have more than tripled for houses, and are up by around 2.5x for attached dwellings.
The housing market might be in for a rough ride of the remainder of the year, but homeowners should probably hang in there as construction costs are in the process of exploding higher again.
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In other news, the number of temporary entrant visa holders in Australia (excluding visitors) rose to a new high of 2.62 million in March 2026, up by around 100,000 from a year earlier.
The term 'temporary' in this context may be a little misleading, since many temporary visa holders remain in the country for the long term.
Cotality reported earlier today that rental price growth had re-accelerated again to the fastest annual pace since 2024.
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