JOHANNESBURG - Annual consumer price inflation (CPI) eased for the first time in five months, declining to 4.3 percent in July from 5 percent in June.
Patrick Kelly, Chief Director for Price Statistics, said the monthly increase in the Consumer Price Index was 0.2 percent, down from 0.7 percent in June.
"The slowdown can be attributed to three main factors: Softer inflation for food and non-alcoholic beverages, lower municipal tariff increases and a decline in fuel prices," Kelly said.
Food and non-alcoholic beverage inflation slowed to 0.9 percent in July, its lowest level since June 2010, when it was 0.7 percent.
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"Incidentally, that was the month that South Africa hosted the World Cup. This month's lower rate was mainly due to cereal products and meat. Cereal products recorded an annual change of -2 percent, down from -1.5 percent in June," Kelly said.
Annual meat inflation slowed to 1.5 percent from 5.1 percent in June.
Most tariff categories surveyed in the CPI recorded lower increases in 2026 compared with 2025. Electricity tariffs rose by 8.1 percent in 2026, down from a 10.4 percent increase last year.
A similar pattern was recorded for water tariffs, which increased by 10.2 percent, compared with a 12.1 percent increase in 2025.
Overall, transport inflation cooled to 8.9 percent in July from 12.9 percent in June.