Dip in Australia’s inflation rate in October raises hopes price rises may have peaked

Headline CPI rate eases from 7.3% to 6.9%, lower than economists' expectations, but fuel prices still rose as full excise rate returned

• Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates
• Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast

Australia's inflation rate eased in October, helped by smaller increases for food, adding to expectations that the rate of price rises may be nearing their peak.

The headline consumer price index for last month was 6.9%, slowing from the 7.3% pace reported for September, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said. Some economists, such as CBA, had predicted the October CPI rate to come in at 7.4%.