Investec Chief Economist Annabel Bishop says strong harvests and favourable weather conditions are helping keep food inflation low in South Africa, despite rising global commodity prices and Middle East tensions.
South African consumers are continuing to experience relatively low food inflation despite rising global commodity prices, with strong local agricultural production helping to offset mounting international pressures.
According to Annabel Bishop, Investec's Chief Economist, global agricultural commodity prices have been rising steadily this year, particularly following the escalation of conflict in the Middle East.
Non food agricultural commodity prices have increased by 10.4% since before the Middle East war, while global food commodity prices are now 8.3% higher year on year.
Despite these international pressures, South Africa’s latest agricultural inflation rate has fallen to minus 5.0% year on year.
