Australia’s inflation rate rises to 4.3%, fuelling fears of fifth interest rate hike this year

CPI release comes ahead of Reserve Bank decision next week as the Middle East conflict intensifies the cost of living crisis

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Australia’s headline inflation rate has accelerated to 4.3%, with a key gauge that strips out volatile prices also elevated, sharpening expectations of another interest rate rise next week.

The Reserve Bank of Australia’s preferred measure of consumer prices, called underlying inflation, came in at an annual 3.6% to September.