Figures issued in the Asian session today, Wednesday, by the Australian Institute of Statistics (ABS) showed that the consumer price index, which measures inflation in Australia, rose by 6.8% on an annual basis in February, compared to 7.4% in January, which came below expectations, which indicated an increase to 7.2.

In the details, the prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages increased by 8.0% on an annual basis in February from 8.2%, while housing prices rose 13% in February, with rent prices increasing by 4.8%, and electricity prices increased by 17.2%.

The Reserve Bank of Australia indicated in its last meeting that it is expected to temporarily stop raising interest rates to monitor the developments of the previous hike, and today’s numbers will support the market’s expectations of stopping tightening monetary policy, which puts pressure on the Australian dollar.