South Africa: Inflation accelerates in February
Inflation came in at 7.0% in February, which was up from January’s 6.9%. Looking at the details of the release, the acceleration was chiefly driven by brisker price increases for food and non-alcoholic beverages. This more than offset softer price increases for both transport and for housing and utilities.
Accordingly, the trend pointed up slightly, with annual average inflation coming in at 7.1% in February (January: 7.0%). Meanwhile, core inflation rose to 5.2% in February, from January’s 4.9%.
Finally, consumer prices increased 0.75% over the previous month in February, swinging from the 0.09% drop recorded in January. February’s figure marked the highest reading since July 2022.