Australian Export Prices Rise 1.4% as Import Prices Fall in September Quarter

Australia's export prices increased 1.4% in the September quarter of 2026, while import prices declined 1.1%, according to figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on 29 October. The results describe changes in prices received and paid for traded goods, not the volume of goods moving through Australian ports.

The export price index was 6.3% higher than a year earlier. The quarterly increase followed a 1.1% rise in the June quarter and was the fourth consecutive quarterly advance, according to Trading Economics' review of the new data.

Higher prices for natural and manufactured gas were a major contributor, with the relevant category rising 28.6% during the quarter. The statistics agency said oil-indexed gas contracts reflected higher crude prices seen in the preceding quarter. Coal, coke and briquettes increased 4.8%, while cereals and cereal preparations rose 5.7%.

Those gains were partly offset by a 6.4% decline in prices for metalliferous ores and metal scrap. The ABS cited greater supply from Australia and Brazil and weaker Chinese construction activity affecting demand for iron ore. Non-monetary gold export prices fell 4.8% in the quarter.

On the import side, the 1.1% quarterly decline followed a sharp 5.7% rise in June. Lower prices for petroleum products and fertilisers were among the contributors, while office and automatic data-processing machines became more expensive. The agency attributed the latter increase partly to demand for equipment used in data centres and artificial-intelligence computing.

Despite the quarterly fall, Australia's import price index remained 5.5% higher than in the September quarter of 2025. The annual figure matters because a decline from one quarter to the next does not necessarily mean import prices have returned to their level a year earlier.

The ABS also reweighted the import and export indexes in the September-quarter release to reflect more recent trade patterns. The changes affect how price movements across categories contribute to the headline index. Trade-price indexes can influence business margins and the terms of trade, but they do not directly measure household inflation, economic growth or the dollar value of Australia's exports.