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A Guide to Understanding Inflation and How It Affects Traders

TABLE OF CONTENTS

A Guide to Understanding Inflation and How It Affects Traders

A Guide to Understanding Inflation and How It Affects Traders

Vantage Updated Updated Thu, January 19 05:16

Inflation is becoming an increasingly important factor in our everyday lives not only in Australia, but also globally. Google searches are up, and it has reasserted itself as a topic of popular conversation. Traders are having to familiarise themselves with how inflation affects financial markets.

Read this article to understand what inflation is, why it matters and how it impacts policymaking.

What is Inflation?

In very simple terms, inflation is the rate at which prices rise. It’s when things cost more than they used to.

Let’s say a trip to the grocery store last year cost you $100. One year later, that same “basket” cost has risen to $105. This would be reported as a 5% year-over-year price change, or 5% inflation.

In effect, inflation reduces our purchasing power over time. This is because it means that every dollar you have buys less tomorrow – be it bread, rent, or medical services.

The fact that goods cost more than they once did, isn’t inherently good or bad. But it does have a very real impact on your money, businesses, and economies.

What Causes Inflation?

Rising inflation is essentially down to the age-old battle between supply and demand. You might read about more technical terms like “cost-push” and “demand-pull” inflation.

Companies may see that the cost of raw material is rising, so they have to raise their prices to compensate. Higher costs are pushing the price of the things we buy higher.

Take your smartphone and think about the many different parts used to produce it.

If we assume the cost of the battery or the microchip inside increases in price, eventually, those higher prices will be passed on to the consumer. 

When our demand to purchase things is greater than what companies can supply, we may pull the price higher. People might have a lot of surplus cash or are accessing credit and want to spend. Businesses may need to raise prices because they lack adequate supply. That gives rise to inflation.

Is Inflation Good or Bad?

The good: 

Low and steadily rising prices are typically brought about by a healthy economy. Stable inflation ensures a modern economy can continue to benefit from an efficient allocation of resources.

  • Rising prices create an incentive to buy more things today. This leads to higher demand which boosts consumer spending and drives economic growth. This can also improve productivity.
  • Central banks, and government policy in general, retain a cushion against falling prices to respond to unforeseen events. This may help reduce the severity of a potential downturn.
  • Savers get a reasonable interest rate on deposit accounts. Borrowers are not overly incentivised to take on more debt.
  • In fact, debts may be paid off with money that is worth less than it was before. Imagine a vendor who sells a product for $10 and owes the bank $200 today. But next year, the seller can charge $15, while the debt remains the same. This means it becomes easier to pay back.

The bad: 

Inflation reduces how much each dollar is worth. Higher inflation therefore means consumers get less for their money.

  • When inflation rises, the cost of living goes up. If this is not offset by higher wages in the short term, households and consumer activity can suffer as discretionary spending is reduced.
  • If prices rise too high, interest rates may rise. This can hurt savers as inflation diminishes the value of the interest you earn on your deposits.
  • Investors may also lose out due to rising prices. This is because interest rates may increase, which typically results in a decrease in the price of fixed-rate securities like fixed-rate bonds and government bonds.

How is Inflation Measured in Australia?

The most popular measure of inflation is produced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) which tracks and calculates a representative group of things consumers spend their money on, known as a ‘basket’.

The widely followed Consumer Price Index (CPI) is the monthly expenses for an average AU household and includes housing, transportation, food prices and more. “Core” CPI strips out food and energy costs which are traditionally more volatile.

Inflation is a backward-looking figure and doesn’t forecast the future and how long inflation might last. 

In Australia, during the observation period between 1960 to 2021, the average rate of inflation was around 4.7% per year. In 2021, the inflation rate was 2.86%. [1]

When it comes to the US, the highest rate of inflation in the US since the introduction of CPI was 19.66% in 1917. A record low printed in 1921 of -15.8%. The 1970s saw the longest period of sustained high inflation rates. The Russia-Ukraine crisis has seen CPI hit multi-decade highs, with the CPI rising 7.9% in February 2022 compared to the previous year.

How Does Inflation Affect Policies and Interest Rates?

Keeping inflation levels stable and consistent (“price stability”) is the responsibility of central banks. In Australia, the inflation target is between 2% and 3%[2], and the central bank can bring about change by adjusting its monetary policies and interest rates.

  • If inflation drops below target over the medium-term, policymakers might lower interest rates to boost the economy. This will encourage consumers and businesses to borrow money at lower rates to get the economy back on track. This should boost retail and capital spending.
  • If inflation goes too high, the central bank could raise rates to try and slow the economy. Higher interest rates normally force consumers and businesses to borrow less and save more, dampening economic activity. 

Investors also need to understand that certain asset classes will perform better as they can act as a hedge against high inflation. Common assets that are more likely to be protected against inflation include gold, commodities and real estate investments.

Gold can behave like an ‘alternative currency’ in times of high inflation, especially when it is a component of a diverse portfolio.

Commodities are key inputs into CPI and may act as a forward-looking measure of inflation. When the price of a commodity rises, so will the cost of the products that the commodity is used to produce.

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References

  1. Inflation rates in Australia – WorldData.infohttps://www.worlddata.info/australia/australia/inflation-rates.php. Accessed 17 Jan 2023. 
  2. Australia’s Inflation Target | Explainer | Education | RBA https://www.rba.gov.au/education/resources/explainers/australias-inflation-target.html. Accessed 17 Jan 2023.

Disclaimer: The material provided here has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Whilst it is not subject to any prohibition on dealing ahead of the dissemination of investment research we will not seek to take any advantage before providing it to our client. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information and therefore it shouldn’t be relied upon as such. Any research provided does not have regard to specific financial situations, needs or investment objectives. Vantage accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. Consequently, any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. We advise any readers of this material to seek professional advice where necessary. Without the approval of Vantage, reproduction or redistribution of this information isn’t permitted.

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