Bunnings Lifts 5 Per Cent as Officeworks Slips and CPI Climbs to 3.5 Per Cent | It’s On Sale Daily Brief, 28 August 2026

Neil Fairhead

CEO, It’s On Sale

Friday morning briefing for Australian shoppers. Wesfarmers closed the biggest reporting week of the year at midday yesterday, and the shape of the number tells you exactly where household budgets are going: Bunnings revenue up 4.1 per cent to 20.4 billion dollars and EBT up 5.1 per cent to 2.45 billion dollars, Kmart Group revenue up 2.8 per cent to 11.75 billion and EBT up 6 per cent to 1.10 billion, and Officeworks growing sales 3.7 per cent but EBT down 22.2 per cent to 165 million because of one off ERP replacement costs. The group lifted the full year dividend 7.8 per cent to 2 dollars 22 fully franked. Meanwhile the ABS CPI print for July revealed headline inflation reversed course to 3.5 per cent (higher than the 3.3 per cent forecast), trimmed mean stuck at 3.6 per cent, and fuel prices jumped 7.5 per cent in the month as the government partially unwound its excise relief. Rate cuts have been pushed back and rate hike risk is quietly building again. In supermarket news, the Woolworths Disney Ooshies collectibles campaign is dragging shoppers away from Coles, and today s live sale scan pulls up Mossman at 70 per cent off women s wear as the standout pick.

Wesfarmers FY26: Bunnings Powers, Kmart Lifts, Officeworks Slips on ERP Costs

Wesfarmers released its FY26 full year result at midday yesterday, closing the biggest reporting week in Australian retail. Group revenue lifted 3.4 per cent to 47.3 billion dollars, EBIT excluding significant items rose 7.3 per cent to 4.5 billion, and NPAT climbed 8.3 per cent to 2.87 billion. Return on equity hit 35.5 per cent up 1.2 percentage points, and the group lifted the full year ordinary dividend 7.8 per cent to 2 dollars 22 fully franked (final of 1 dollar 20). Shareholders had already received a 1 dollar 50 capital management distribution in December 2025, taking total shareholder distributions to 3 dollars 72 for the year. Full breakdown per Investing.com and Owen Raszkiewicz at Rask Media.

At the divisional level, Bunnings revenue grew 4.1 per cent to 20.4 billion dollars with EBT up 5.1 per cent to 2.45 billion, growth across both consumer and commercial customers and every product category and region. Digital sales lifted to 7.6 per cent of total sales (up from 6.5 per cent). Kmart Group revenue rose 2.8 per cent to 11.75 billion, EBT climbed 6 per cent to 1.10 billion, though seasonal categories were called out as challenging and Kmart New Zealand earnings suffered from an adverse exchange rate. Officeworks was the underperformer: revenue up 3.7 per cent to 3.7 billion but EBT down 22.2 per cent to 165 million, absorbing about 40 million dollars of transformation costs from restructuring and ERP replacement. Wesfarmers Health lifted EBT 18.8 per cent to 76 million on Priceline network sales growth of 12.7 per cent, and WesCEF grew EBT 18.5 per cent to 473 million on higher fertiliser and lithium prices.

The consumer read: this is the FY where Bunnings has told the market that home improvement demand is fully broad based across trade and DIY customers, and it has enough operating leverage to fund the PowerPass member exclusives programme through spring. Watch for end of aisle clearance on winter heating and outdoor firewood in the next 10 days as ranges reset for spring. Kmart Anko own brand pricing has been held flat for a full financial year now, so kitchen basics, storage, bed linen and kids clothing should stay stable through the September school holidays. Officeworks running 22 per cent below prior year on earnings does not mean the store is in trouble (revenue still grew), but it does mean Officeworks will run sharper promotions on printer ink, technology bundles and Apple education pricing to defend basket share through term four. Priceline s Sister Club programme is now the pointy end of Wesfarmers Health growth, so expect the 3x and 5x points weekends to hold through spring on skincare and beauty. Practical action for a Friday shop: if you need a heater, tap, garden tool or drill from Bunnings, check the PowerPass end of season aisle first because those are the deepest discounts of the year.

July CPI Comes In Hot at 3.5 Per Cent: Rate Cut Bets Pushed Out, Hike Risk Creeps Back

The ABS monthly Consumer Price Index for July 2026 released Wednesday came in at 3.5 per cent annual, up from what markets had expected to see fall to 3.3 per cent after a base effect drop out. The monthly change was 1.0 per cent (versus a 0.8 per cent forecast). Trimmed mean annual inflation held at 3.6 per cent, still above the RBA s 2 to 3 per cent target band, and the monthly trimmed mean jumped 0.5 per cent (the biggest single month increase in a year). Housing was the biggest driver at 5.0 per cent annual (new dwellings 5.7 per cent, rents 3.6 per cent), followed by food and non alcoholic beverages at 3.2 per cent where meals out and takeaway were up 4.5 per cent. Automotive fuel jumped 7.5 per cent in the month alone (after three months of falls) driven by higher world oil prices and the partial unwinding of the federal fuel excise relief. Reaction per Wayne Cole at Reuters included traders repricing the probability of a fourth RBA rate hike higher, the Australian dollar lifting 0.3 per cent to a 12 week high of 71.83 US cents, and three year bond futures selling off 4 ticks.

Household impact: the takeaway is that rate cuts previously pencilled in for late 2026 are being pushed into 2027, and the RBA is now watching the September and October CPI monthly prints for signs of a sustained upward move that could justify a hike. Mortgage rates hold at current levels for now, but the pressure on discretionary spending remains, which is why the FY26 retail earnings prints have skewed to value operators: Bunnings, Kmart, Priceline, Coles Own Brand and Woolworths Homebrand. Grocery basket inflation of 3.2 per cent means the average weekly shop is up about 12 to 15 dollars year on year for a family of four, and meals out inflation of 4.5 per cent means the case for cooking at home two extra nights a week keeps getting stronger. Practical action: with fuel up 7.5 per cent in the month, always link Flybuys or Everyday Rewards to your fuel dockets for the 4 cents per litre off, top up on any 10 cents per litre bonus offers that come through the app, and stack Coles or Woolworths Mastercard purchase points on top for compounding value.

Woolies Ooshies Craze Pulls Parents From Coles: Q1 F27 Basket Data

Woolworths brought back Disney Ooshies collectibles in mid July as a spend and collect promotion (customers get a free mini figurine with every 30 dollar shop) and the impact on Coles was made clear this week. Per Jonathan Barrett at The Guardian, Coles first quarter F27 supermarket sales grew just 0.8 per cent in the July to early August window, the weakest quarterly comparable result in two years. Woolworths Food Retail sales grew 7.6 per cent across the same first eight weeks of F27, and management attributed about 1.5 to 2 percentage points of that lift to the Ooshies collectibles campaign, per the Woolworths FY26 result announcement. Coles CEO Leah Weckert has conceded the short term hit but said the longer term price war is where basket share is really won.

Consumer angle: Ooshies are back in Woolworths through late September (the campaign historically runs about 10 weeks). If you have kids under 10, this is genuinely useful (Woolies weekly Half Price shelves are still there, and the free Ooshie stacks on top). If you do not have kids, the smart move is to hold your loyalty split: Everyday Rewards personalised Boost offers are running deeper in this quarter to keep members loyal, and Coles Flybuys is countering with elevated points bonuses (frequently 5,000 to 10,000 point weekend offers). Practical action: check both apps before your Saturday shop. The Half Price and Prices Dropped shelf ranges at each store will genuinely differ this week because both retailers are playing to their loyalty base. If you shop Coles, use the Flybuys Bonus offers before the weekend to lock in points; if you shop Woolies, add the free Ooshie for the kids and use the Boost personalised offers on the categories you were going to buy anyway.

Amazon Prime Video ACCC Federal Court Case Still Live

The ACCC v Amazon Australia Federal Court proceeding (VID702 of 2026) remains active, with the regulator targeting five unfair contract terms said to have been used to add advertising to Prime Video and charge affected subscribers an extra 2 dollars 99 a month between November 2023 and August 2025. Sarah Thompson and Anthony Macdonald at the AFR reported ACCC chair Gina Cass Gottlieb saying Amazon left subscribers with no realistic choice but to pay more to keep the ad free service they had originally signed up for. The regulator is seeking penalties, declarations and refunds on behalf of more than one million Australian annual Prime subscribers affected during that window.

For Australian households the practical action stays the same: if you paid the ad free upcharge on an annual Prime subscription between November 2023 and August 2025, keep the billing emails, credit card statements and receipts. Any eventual refund order will depend on Amazon being able to identify affected accounts, and the paper trail is on the subscriber s side. In the meantime, the safer choice for the Christmas retail run remains Australian owned stores with local fulfilment, predictable returns and Australian consumer law protections. Every store featured in today s Top 5, and every store in the Today s Sales pool, meets that Australian owned standard.