By Zuko Komisa

- Annual inflation slowed from 5.0% in June to 4.3% in July.
- Primary drivers were housing, transport, and insurance costs.
- Month-on-month CPI growth dropped to 0.2% from June’s 0.7%.
South Africa’s consumer price inflation cooled noticeably in July. Housing, transport, and insurance emerged as the primary upward drivers of price levels throughout the period.
This cooling trend comes as a welcome reprieve for South African households facing sustained cost-of-living pressures over recent years.
The South African Reserve Bank targets an inflation band of 3% to 6%, with a preference for keeping price growth near the 4.5% midpoint. Dropping below this target midpoint gives the central bank greater scope to consider easing monetary policy and potentially lowering borrowing costs.
#SAInflation || Annual consumer price inflation declined to 4,3% in July from 5,0% in June.
— Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) (@StatsSA) August 19, 2026
Listen here for more: https://t.co/khuzOAdHIK #StatsSA #KnowYourStatsZA #CPI #GovZAUpdates @GovernmentZA pic.twitter.com/hq4eTvhyQT
Commenting on the shift, Statistics South Africa highlighted the specific forces easing pressure on household budgets:
“The slowdown can be attributed to softer inflation for food and non-alcoholic beverages, lower municipal tariff increases and a decline in fuel prices.”
The annual rate for food and non-alcoholic beverages dropped to 0.9% in July.
This marks the lowest figure for the category in more than 16 years matching levels not seen since June 2010, when South Africa hosted the FIFA World Cup.
Kaya Biz with Gugulethu Mfuphi spoke to Nedbank Economist Isaac Matshego who breaks down South Africa’s July CPI.
Listen to the full conversation here:
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