South Africa: Inflation lands at Central Bank's target in March

Consumer prices rose 0.8% from a month earlier in March, matching February’s 0.8% increase. March’s reading largely reflected higher prices for alcoholic beverages and tobacco, and fuel. Core consumer prices—which exclude food and fuel prices—climbed 0.7%, down from 1.1% in February.

Meanwhile, inflation rose to 4.5% in March (February: 4.1%), landing at the midpoint of the South African Reserve Bank (SARB)’s target band of 3.0%–6.0%. Core inflation was stable from a month prior at 4.4%, while annual average inflation was unchanged at February’s 4.6%.

South Africa Inflation Forecast

The SARB sees inflation averaging 4.8% in 2019 and 5.3% in 2020. FocusEconomics Consensus Forecast panelists see inflation averaging 4.8% in 2019, which is down 0.2 percentage points from last month’s forecast. Our panel sees inflation averaging 5.2% in 2020.