South Africa’s consumer inflation continued its downward trend, easing to 2.8% in October, marking the fifth consecutive month of decline. This sharp drop from September’s 3.8% is the lowest inflation rate recorded since June 2020.
According to Stats SA’s Chief Director for Price Statistics, Patrick Kelly, the main driver behind this reduction was the significant drop in fuel costs. Petrol and diesel prices fell by 5.3% between September and October, with the annual fuel price dropping by 19.1%. The price of inland 95-octane petrol in October was R21.05, the lowest since February 2022, when it was R20.14.
The reduction in fuel prices led to a 0.8 percentage point decrease in overall inflation, with the transport index showing a 5.3% annual decrease. Kelly also noted that inflation eased across most food items and non-alcoholic beverages in October, except for sugar, sweets, and desserts.
The price index for bread and cereals fell by 0.5% between September and October, lowering the annual rate to 4.6%. Additionally, the cost of maize meal dropped by 2% for the third consecutive month. The inflation rate for milk, eggs, and cheese also saw a significant decrease, falling to 4.1% in October from 6.9% in September.