Living costs for pensioners and self-funded retirees are rising at their slowest pace in over a decade and more slowly than general consumer prices, according to data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) yesterday.

The Analytical Living Cost Index (ALCI) for self-funded retiree households fell 0.5 per cent in the March quarter 2012, while rising just 1.3 per cent over the year to March.

That compares to a 0.1 per cent quarterly rise in the consumer price index (CPI) and 1.6 per cent a year earlier.

The annual change in the self-funded retirees ALCI was the lowest since the December quarter of 1999.

The quarterly decrease in the ALCI for self-funded retirees was mainly due to falls in fruit, international holiday travel and accommodation, and domestic holiday travel and accommodation, while prices rose for pharmaceutical products, petrol, and medical and hospital services.

Self-funded retiree households have a higher proportion of expenditure on recreation and culture, and food and non-alcoholic beverages relative to the CPI population, both of which recorded falls in the March quarter. 

Meanwhile, the ALCI for age pensioners rose a modest 1.1 per cent over the year to March 2012, the lowest year-on-year increase since the ALCIs were introduced in June 1998. The quarterly rise of 0.1 per cent was the lowest since December 2008.

Age pensioner households have a relatively higher proportion of expenditure on health compared to the overall population.

The rise in health costs was largely offset by a fall in food and non-alcoholic beverages, for which age pensioner households also have a relatively higher expenditure.

The ALCIs are price indexes designed specifically to measure the impact of changes in prices on the out-of-pocket living costs experienced by four household types: employee households, age pensioner households, other government transfer recipient households, and self-funded retiree households.

Meanwhile, the Pensioner and Beneficiary Living Cost Index, which is based on the ALCIs, rose just 0.1 per cent in the March quarter, to be up 1.4 per cent from a year earlier.

The most significant price rise in the March quarter was for health (up 8.6 per cent), while food and non-alcohol beverage costs fell 2.8 per cent.