Australia’s inflation rate rose to 6.8% in April driven by energy prices but price pressures eased

Underlying inflation dropped to 6.5% in April from 6.9% in March, reducing the chances of another Reserve Bank rate rise in June

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Headline inflation picked up last month as energy prices jumped but the underlying price pressures eased, reducing the chances of another Reserve Bank rate rise in June.

Consumer prices advanced 6.8% in April, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday, a rate higher than the 6.4% pace economists had expected, and the 6.3% reading for March.

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