Australian inflation marginally up in April

Sydney, April 30 (IANS) The consumer price in Australia continued to rise in April, said a survey released Monday.

The TD Securities-Melbourne Institute Monthly Inflation Gauge rose 0.3 percent in April following a 0.5 percent rise in March, TD Securities said.

In the 12 months to April, the Inflation Gauge increased by 1.9 percent, after a 1.8 percent rise over the year to March.

Price rises in automotive fuel, rents and health contributed to the overall change in April, the survey found.

These were offset by falls in travel-related expenses, clothing and footwear, recreation and culture-related activities, reported Xinhua.

Head of Asia-Pacific Research at TD Securities Annette Beacher said that the April survey gave the correct signal that inflation has weakened at both the headline and underlying levels.

She said it was encouraging that the underlying measure of inflation remained in the bottom half of the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) two to three percent inflation target band.

"While financial market instability appears to be a persistent backdrop for central banks when assessing the correct stance of monetary policy, and the European sovereign debt crisis remains far from resolved, there is not a strong case for the RBA Board to slash the cash rate by 50 basis points tomorrow," Beacher said in a statement Monday.

She predicted that the RBA was likely to cut the cash rate at its May 1 board meeting by no more than 25 basis points.