WELLINGTON, July 21 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand's annual inflation rate hit a two-year high of 4.1 percent in the 12 months to the June 2026 quarter, official data showed on Tuesday.
The 4.1-percent rise, driven mainly by sharply higher fuel prices, followed a 3.1-percent increase in the 12 months to the March 2026 quarter, and moved above the Reserve Bank of New Zealand's target range of 1 to 3 percent, Stats NZ reported.
Petrol prices rose 27.5 percent over the period, making the largest contribution to annual inflation, the statistics department said in a statement.
"Higher petrol prices accounted for almost a quarter of the 4.1 percent annual increase," Stats NZ prices and deflators spokesperson Nicola Growden was quoted as saying.
Diesel prices surged 71 percent, contributing 7.7 percent to the annual inflation rate. However, petrol had a greater impact on the consumer price index (CPI) because households spent about eight times more on petrol than diesel, Stats NZ said.
Excluding changes in petrol and diesel prices, annual inflation would have been 2.9 percent in the 12 months to the June 2026 quarter, the department noted.
Other contributors to annual inflation included electricity prices, local authority rates and payments, and the cost of constructing new housing, it said, adding that more than 80 percent of the CPI basket recorded price increases over the 12 months to June, while about 15 percent fell in price.
On a quarterly basis, the CPI rose 1.5 percent in the June quarter, with petrol prices increasing 20.1 percent and diesel prices up 47.7 percent, together accounting for almost two-thirds of the CPI quarterly increase, statistics showed.
Petrol and diesel prices rose in April and fell in May and June, Stats NZ said, noting that excluding fuel prices, quarterly inflation was 0.5 percent.
Construction of new housing also contributed to quarterly inflation, with higher material, subcontractor, fuel and labour costs pushing new housing prices higher, the department said. ■
