South Africa’s annual consumer inflation climbed to 3.6% in October, up from 3.4% in September, marking the highest reading since September 2024, when inflation reached 3.8%.
Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) reported that the consumer price index (CPI) increased by 0.1% month-on-month.
Mixed category performance as some costs heat up
The rise was driven largely by increases in:
At the same time, inflation eased in several major spending categories, including:
Food inflation eases again
Food and NAB inflation fell to 3.9%, down from September’s 4.5%, as several sub-categories recorded slower price growth, including:
Categories that rose faster included cereal products, fish and seafood, oils and fats, dairy and eggs, and the broad “other food” grouping.
Meat prices: Still high, but easing
Meat inflation continues to cool from its recent peak, dropping to 11.4% from 11.7%, though many items remain steeply priced:
However, some relief is emerging. Prices dropped for:
Other notable food trends
Transport inflation turns positive after more than a year
Transport inflation moved back into positive territory for the first time in 13 months, rising from -0.1% to 1.5%.
Fuel saw a modest month-on-month increase of 0.1%:
This pushed annual fuel inflation to 3.3%, its first positive reading since August 2024.
Leisure and lifestyle costs rise
The recreation, sport & culture category saw inflation climb to 3.4% from 2.9%.
Notable increases include:
Sporting event ticket prices, however, fell 12.6% year-on-year.
Provincial and income-level differences
Stats SA’s breakdown shows:
While poorer households typically face higher inflation, October saw an unusual shift: The richest spending group recorded the highest inflation rate at 3.9%.
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