The price of fuel is set to increase next Wednesday. Patrick Kelly, Stats SA's chief director for price statistics, said higher fuel prices were overwhelmingly responsible for the acceleration.
A sharp rise in fuel prices pushed South Africa's annual consumer inflation rate to its highest level in two years in June, with motorists and commuters bearing the brunt of higher transport costs as geopolitical tensions continued to filter through to the local economy.
Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) on Wednesday reported that annual consumer price inflation accelerated to 5% in June, up from 4.5% in May and above market expectations of 4.7%.
This marked the fourth consecutive monthly increase and the highest inflation reading since June 2024, when the rate stood at 5.1%, and could force the SA Reserve Bank to adjust upwards its monetary policy rate to arrest the inflation acceleration.
On a monthly basis, consumer prices rose by 0.7%, matching the increase recorded in May.
