South Africa consumer inflation slows more than expected in July

Polity Audio Articles · Aug 19, 2026 · 1m

South Africa consumer inflation slows more than expected in July South Africa's inflation rate slowed for the first time in five months in July, partly due to a steep drop in fuel costs, but analysts said it could soon climb again as renewed US-Iran hostilities had since driven global oil prices higher. Headline inflation in Africa's largest economy eased to 4.3% year-on-year, lower than the 4.5% predicted by economists polled by Reuters and June's 5.0% reading, Statistics South Africa data showed on Wednesday. The agency attributed the slowdown to three main factors: softer food inflation…