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BL Premium reports that consumer inflation rose for the first time in four months in February, partly reflecting rising costs associated with load-shedding and potentially sealing the case for yet another interest rate hike when the SA Reserve Bank’s monetary policy committee meets next week.
The headline consumer price index (CPI) rose at an annual rate of 7% in February, up from 6.9% in January, Stats SA indicated in a statement on Wednesday. The hotter-than-expected inflation reading is a blow to hard-pressed consumers and businesses. Until February, consumer prices on aggregate had been moderating since peaking at the 13-year high of 7.8% last year. In February, food and non-alcoholic beverages annual inflation hit 13.6% – the highest level since April 2009. The price of maize meal increased by almost 35% over the past year, with a sharp rise of 2.2% between January and February alone. Transport (including fuel prices) also contributed to February's high inflation rate following recent price hikes. But the annual increase in fuel prices slowed to 10.9%, the lowest reading since March 2021. February's inflation numbers included annual price hikes of 5.3% for medical services (doctors, dentists and hospital ward fees).
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Andries Mahlangu at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
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