In a recent report released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) on Wednesday, it was revealed that the consumer inflation rate experienced a marginal decline, moving from 5.6% in February to 5.3% in March. This dip is reflective of the Consumer Price Index, which saw a decrease to 0.8% in March, down from February’s 1%.
According to Stats SA, the sectors that witnessed the most significant annual price changes in March were an assorted mix. “The categories with the highest annual price changes in March were miscellaneous goods and services up 8.5%, education up 6.3%, health up 6.0% and housing and utilities up 5.9%,” it was announced.
An aspect that garnered particular attention was the increase in education fees, which are surveyed annually in March. “Education fees are surveyed once a year in March. Overall, education was 6.3% more expensive in 2024 than it was in 2023. This exceeds the 5.7% annual increase in 2023 and is the highest since 2020 when the rate was 6.4%,” Stats SA detailed.
Adding to this mix, Stats SA highlighted a noteworthy trend in food inflation which now stands “at a three-and-a-half-year low”. The agency elaborated, “Inflation for food and non-alcoholic beverages slowed to 5.1% in March from 6.1% in February. This is down from its recent peak of 14.0% in March 2023, and is the lowest annual increase since September 2020 when the rate was 3.8%.”
Specific categories within food saw considerable changes. For instance, bread and cereals saw a drop in their annual inflation rate, whereas the meat sector benefited from reduced beef and mutton prices. However, sugar, sweets, and desserts continue to witness an inflation rate that has remained above 15% since June the previous year, with notable price hikes in products like brown and white sugar, as well as chocolate slabs and bars.
Another significant factor influencing the inflation landscape was the increase in excise taxes, particularly impacting the prices of alcohol and tobacco. Housing and transport costs also climbed, with housing rents and the transport index seeing increases in March. “The index increased by a monthly 1.9% in March. This is the highest monthly rise since March last year when excise tax increases led to a 2.2% monthly rise. Prices increased by 4.5% overall in the 12 months to March,” noted Stats SA.
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