A steep drop in global fuel prices is yet to be felt much beyond the petrol pump as the low exchange rate and company profit taking holds up the cost of consumer electronics, furniture and other household goods.
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Though official figures show growth in living costs is gradually easing, shoppers are yet to feel the benefit of substantial falls in global production and trade costs.
Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show prices for computers, televisions and other consumer electronics have held up in the past nine months as has the cost of furniture, food, toys and travel.
After spiking by more than 30 per cent following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, global energy prices have fallen and are back to pre-war levels.
The International Monetary Fund's global price of energy index more than halved to 169 points in May after reaching 376 points in August 2022.
![Consumers missing out on global price downturn Consumers missing out on global price downturn](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/202296158/87b89543-752a-4ee4-9bf0-5f2ce2a73b27.jpg/r0_287_5500_3381_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
ABS head of prices statistics Michelle Marquardt said easing supply pressures and moderating demand from a combination of a mild northern winter, a slowing global economy and measures to reduce emissions had reduced price pressures in energy markets.
This is flowing through to Australian consumers in lower prices at the bowser. According to the fuelprice.io website, in Canberra the price of a litre of unleaded petrol has dropped from $2.22 in June 2022 to $1.85 last week, while over the same period diesel fell from $2.33 to $1.94.
Ms Marquardt said lower fuel prices were also helping drive down the cost of making energy intensive products like fertilisers and chemicals.
But cheaper global energy and shipping costs - which have retreated to pre-pandemic levels after soaring to record highs in 2021 - are yet to translate into lower shelf prices for Australian consumers.
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Ms Marquardt said the cost of imported capital and consumption goods, from industrial machinery and vehicles to fridges, televisions, computers and food, were still going up.
Partly this is down to the weaker Australian dollar, given that many of these goods are traded in the US currency.
But the ABS statistician said there was evidence that offshore producers were still passing the higher costs they experienced last year on to Australian consumers.
She said that in the case of capital equipment like large pieces of industrial machinery, prices might only be set once a year.
But in the case of highly manufactured consumer goods like appliances and electronics, "we are still seeing the impact of manufacturer costs being passed through".
Australia Institute senior economist Matt Grudnoff said China was experiencing disinflation as the cost of products fell but warned Australian consumers that was unlikely to happen here.
Instead, companies were likely to hold on to big price margins as long as they could.
"A lot of inflation has been driven by supply constraints but it has been maintained by profiteering," Mr Grudnoff said.
The economist said companies were able to profit from the current situation because of a lack of competition, citing as an example the airline duopoly which he argued had helped drive up the cost of international travel.
"What Australian consumers are suffering from is a lack of competition in the Australian market," he said.
"The more competition there is, the faster we are going to see prices dip," he said.
Mr Grudnoff said the federal government's agenda to boost competition, like imposing price caps on gas and coal companies, would help but was "tinkering".
"This has been a long-term trend. If you want to rectify the situation that is going to take more than tinkering. It is going to take larger reform."
He said the government needed to explain the cost to consumers and society of inadequate competition and introduce reforms such as US-style anti-trust laws and stricter controls over mergers and acquisitions.