South Africa: Inflation recedes to 11-month low in April
Inflation dropped to 6.8% in April, down from March’s 7.1%. April’s reading represented the softest inflation rate since May 2022. Looking at the details of the release, the downtick was chiefly due to prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages and transport growing at slower rates. These price developments more than offset prices for housing and utilities increasing at a brisker pace in April.
Still, the trend was unchanged, with annual average inflation coming in at March’s 7.2% in April. Meanwhile, core inflation ticked up to 5.3% in April (March: 5.2%).
Lastly, consumer prices rose 0.37% from the previous month in April, slowing from March’s 1.02% increase.