Pretoria: Consumer price inflation remained at 3.2% in February, unchanged from January.
According to South African Government News Agency, the main contributors to the annual inflation rate were housing and utilities, which increased by 4.4% and contributed 1.0 percentage point, and food and non-alcoholic beverages, which rose by 2.8% and contributed 0.5 of a percentage point. The categories of restaurants and accommodation services also played a role in the inflation rate.
‘Recreation, sport and culture, food and non-alcoholic beverages, alcoholic beverages and tobacco, and communication recorded higher annual inflation rates in February,’ said Stats SA Director of CPI Operations, Lekau Ranoto. Inflation cooled for several product categories, particularly in personal care and miscellaneous services, health, restaurants and accommodation, furnishings, household equipment and routine maintenance, and transport.
The annual rate for food and non-alcoholic beverages increased to 2.8% in February from 2.3% in January. ‘Fruit and nuts, vegetables, hot beverages, seafood, meat, and cereals recorded higher rates. On the downside, cold beverages, milk, dairy and eggs, oils and fats, and sugar confectionary and desserts witnessed slower price increases,’ Ranoto noted.
Ranoto highlighted that inflation in maize meal, a staple in South African households, reached a 17-month high, with samp inflation also hitting a 19-month high in February. ‘The rise in prices is driven by inflationary pressure from the farming and manufacturing of maize according to the latest producer price index data. On average, consumer prices for meat stayed the same in February, compared with January, resulting in a monthly change of 0%. The annual rate was also 0%,’ she explained.
In contrast, inflation for hot beverages continued to accelerate, with the annual change in the price index for hot beverages reaching 14.6% in February, up from 13.7% in January. Meanwhile, Stats SA recorded a 10.5% increase in medical aid premiums this year, and health services rose by 6.1%, compared with a 5% rise last year.