Inflation levels in South Africa edged up by 1% in November to 2.9%.
This was according to Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) who said that annual consumer inflation was at 2,9% in November, slightly up from 2,8% in October.
There was no change in the consumer price index (CPI) between October and November.
While it may not feel like it for many South Africans, StatsSA said that food inflation is the lowest it has been in 14 years
“Annual inflation for food and non-alcoholic beverages (NAB) witnessed another sharp decline in November, slowing to 2,3% from 3,6% in October. This marks the lowest inflation rate for the category since December 2010, when it stood at 1,6%. Eight of the 11 food and NAB groups registered lower rates, including vegetables; milk, eggs and cheese; hot beverages; bread and cereals; cold beverages; meat; sugar, sweets and desserts; and the miscellaneous category ‘other’ food,” StatsSA stated.
Fish inflation was flat, while oils and fats and fruit recorded steeper price increases. The annual rate for bread and cereals moderated further, cooling to its lowest level in almost three years.
“Important items such as brown bread, white bread, maize meal, cold cereals, pasta and rice recorded lower rates. Inflation quickened for several products, including samp and hot cereals. Annual milk, eggs and cheese inflation declined to its lowest level in almost five-and-a-half years. After burning a hole in households’ food budgets for much of 2024, egg inflation descended into deflationary territory in November, falling to -3,7%. This is down from a high of 39,9% a year ago,” StatsSA said.
The graphs below show food and beverage products that recorded significant price changes in November:
Fuel increased by 0,9% month-on-month in November, taking the annual rate to -13,6% from -19,1% in October.
The price index for the restaurants and hotels category rose by 5,9% in the 12 months to November, with increases recorded for both restaurants (+5,1%) and hotels (+7,5%).
Annual inflation for restaurants and hotels is down from the recent high of 7,5% in June this year.
Inflation hits the poor the hardest
Stats SA said it calculates inflation rates for ten expenditure categories, providing insight into the impact of inflation on various socio-economic groups.
“The poorest households have shouldered the highest inflation rate since January 2022, peaking at 11,3% in April 2023. This declined to 3,8% in November 2024 but remains the highest across all expenditure categories. By contrast, the wealthiest households registered an annual increase of 3,0% in November, slightly above the headline rate,” StatsSA said.
Western Cape has the highest inflation rate
Stats SA further said it calculates provincial inflation rates as well.
“In November the provinces with the highest inflation rates were Western Cape (3,4%), Free State (3,2%) and KwaZulu-Natal (3,1%). Inflation in Western Cape remained above the headline rate for the period January to November 2024,” StatsSA said.
Limpopo (2,4%) and Mpumalanga (2,5%) recorded the lowest rates in November, StatsSA further stated.
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