South Africa: Inflation touches 10-month low in January
Consumer prices fell 0.2% from a month earlier in January, in line with December’s outturn but landing below analysts’ expectations. Sharply lower fuel costs were behind the reading, and more than offset higher food costs. To that effect, core consumer prices—which exclude food and fuel prices—rose 0.2%, down from 0.3% in December.
Inflation dropped to 4.0% (December: 4.5%), falling below the midpoint of the South African Reserve Bank (SARB)’s target band of 3.0%–6.0%. Core inflation was stable from December at 4.4%, while annual average inflation was stable at 4.6%.