The consumer price index (CPI) in April decelerated to 4.4% from a year earlier compared with 4.5% in March, Statistics SA indicated on Wednesday.  

Underlying inflation pressures were seen to be receding with annual core inflation, which excludes the cost of food, non-alcoholic beverages, fuel and electricity, slowing to 4.1%, the weakest pace of increases since March 2018.  Investec economist Kamila Kaplan said in April the effect of higher energy price inflation was partially countered by low food price growth and muted underlying inflation.  Kaplan projected CPI to average an annualised 4.8% in 2019, but was set to rise back towards the upper end of the target range in 2020 on low base factors and high administered price increases (especially electricity).  Economist Mark Bohlund commented:  “We expect rising food prices and a modest increase in the contribution from transport costs should push inflation toward 5% in the next few quarters.  We see inflation accelerating more rapidly in the second half of 2019 and the first quarter of 2020 than the Reserve Bank is currently (predicting).”

• Based on reports at Business Report and Moneyweb

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