Deputy Governor Andrew Hauser told ABC's 7.30 that the price level is 10 to 20 per cent higher than it should have been, offering a frank explanation of why "People are furious about inflation."

Central bankers usually talk about inflation as a rate: how fast prices are rising over a year. Households experience it differently. They notice what a weekly shop or a tank of fuel costs compared with a few years ago. In an interview on ABC's 7.30 on 8 September 2026, Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Deputy Governor Andrew Hauser bridged those two perspectives.

"the price level in the economy has risen by 10, 15, 20 per cent higher than it should have done," he said. And he was blunt about the consequence: "People are furious about inflation."

Three weeks later, on 29 September, the Monetary Policy Board raised the cash rate target by 25 basis points to 4.60 per cent, its fourth increase of 2026.

Rate versus level: why both matter

The distinction Hauser drew is central to understanding public frustration.

The inflation rate measures the pace of price rises. Headline CPI rose 4.0 per cent over the year to August 2026. Underlying inflation has been about 3.5 per cent for the past six months, according to Governor Michele Bullock, and the trimmed mean measure was 3.6 per cent in the June quarter. Inflation peaked at 7.9 per cent at the end of 2022.

The price level is the cumulative result of all those years of increases stacked on top of one another. Even when the rate slows, the level does not fall back; prices simply rise more slowly from a higher base.

Hauser's comment was about the level. The material available for this article does not set out the exact baseline or calculation behind his range of 10, 15 or 20 per cent, so it is best read as he framed it: an indication of how far prices have moved beyond where they would otherwise have been, rather than a precise published estimate.

The RBA's target is expressed as an inflation rate of 2–3 per cent, with a midpoint of 2.5 per cent. Returning to that target means prices rising more slowly. It does not mean prices returning to where they were before the recent bout of inflation.

Where the anger comes from

RBA officials have pointed to several sources of pressure that help explain Hauser's observation.

  • Energy and transport. Bullock said on 29 September that "fuel prices, fertiliser prices, transport prices, all these things now are permanently higher." The Board's statement cited further disruption to global oil supply from the Middle East conflict, with higher fuel prices partly passing through to other goods and services.
  • Regional exposure. Assistant Governor (Economic) Sarah Hunter, at the Regions Rising summit in Canberra on 14 September, said: "the importance of fuel, and particularly diesel to the regional economy, we don't underestimate that".
  • Real incomes. The October 2026 Financial Stability Review found real household disposable income per capita declined slightly over the first half of 2026, although it remains higher than its 2023 and 2024 averages.
  • Mortgage costs. "Those who have mortgages, yes, this clearly impacts them and it hurts them," Bullock acknowledged. Assistant Governor (Financial Markets) Christopher Kent said on 13 August that "Scheduled mortgage payments have risen and are now close to their 2024 peak as a share of household disposable income."

Hunter summed up the community mood on 14 September: "for many members of the community, it's a tough time". She also offered balance, saying "the average household, actually, with a mortgage, for example, looks pretty well-placed as well".

What Hauser said the Board was weighing

The 7.30 interview was not only about public sentiment. Hauser set out three upside risks to inflation: the Middle East crisis; "a really unexpected global boom driven by AI"; and weak supply potential in the Australian economy.

On AI, he characterised the investment surge as "a fairly conventional investment boom", while noting the uncertainty around valuations: "It could be spectacularly high or it could be zero."

He also described how the Board was approaching the trade-off. The Board was taking a gradual approach to protect jobs, he said, but could raise rates further if needed. He noted that the Board has nine voting members and would not pre-commit to a path.

By 29 September, the Board's statement recorded that some upside risks had materialised, including the oil supply disruption and strong AI-related demand pushing up technology-goods prices, and it judged further tightening was warranted.

Why public anger matters to a central bank

Public frustration with prices is not only a political issue. It connects to one of the RBA's central concerns: inflation expectations. If people come to expect high inflation to continue, that belief can feed into how businesses set prices and how wages are negotiated.

Bullock framed the September decision in exactly those terms: "It's critical that we stop expectations for high inflation from becoming embedded in price-setting decisions."

She also sought to put the episode in proportion. "Inflation is not in double digits. Inflation is about 3.5 per cent," she said in response to a comparison with earlier eras, and added that "there is no wage price spiral going on in Australia."

Hauser is scheduled to appear at the Citi ANZ Investment Conference at 9.30 am AEDT on 21 October. What he will say there is not known in advance.

The bottom line

Hauser's remark that prices are 10 to 20 per cent higher than they should have been explains why inflation still feels acute even though the annual rate has fallen well below its 2022 peak. The price level reflects years of accumulated increases, and a return to the 2–3 per cent target would slow future rises rather than reverse past ones. RBA officials have linked the pressure to fuel, transport and other costs, and the Board has said its focus is on stopping high inflation from becoming embedded. The exact calculation behind Hauser's range is not set out in the material available.