Tumbling fuel and fruit prices are likely to have kept a lid on inflation in the first few months of the year, leaving room for a rate cut by the central bank.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is expected to have risen 0.25 per cent in the March quarter for an annual rate of 1.77 per cent, according to an AAP survey of 10 economists.
Underlying inflation, which strips out the effects of volatile price movements, is forecast to have been at 0.5 per cent in the quarter and 1.95 per cent over the year.
The data will be released on Wednesday by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
