New Zealand’s Consumer Price Index rose 5.6% y/y in the September quarter, down from Q2’s 6%, and below the market’s 5.9% expectation, and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s 6.0% forecast published in its last Monetary Policy Statement, Stats NZ data showed Tuesday.

CPI rose 1.5% q/q, while annual non-tradable inflation grew 6.3%. Annual tradable inflation rose 4.7%.

Food price rises drove the print. Milk, cheese and eggs grew 11.5% y/y, while bread and cereals rose 11.8% (see chart). Housing and household utilities increased 5.3% - home prices grew 5.1%, rents gained 4.4%, while property rates and related services rose 9.6%.