South Africa’s statistical agency, Stats SA, has reported a decline in headline inflation to 5.3% in March from 5.6% in February, marking a two-month downward trend. This rate previously held steady between 5% and 6% since September 2023.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) showed a monthly increase of 0.8% in March, lower than the 1.0% uptick in February.

Key Changes in March

Highest annual price changes for consumers in various categories:

• Miscellaneous goods & services (up 8.5%)
• Education costs (up 6.3%)
• Health expenses (up 6.0%)
• Housing & utilities (up 5.9%)

Education fees, surveyed annually in March, were 6.3% higher in 2024 compared to 2023. This exceeds the 5.7% annual increase from the previous year and marks the highest increase since 2020 when the rate stood at 6,4%.

High schools experienced the most significant uptick at 7.3%, followed by primary schools and tertiary institutions, both up by 5.9%. Crèches increased fees by 6.0%, while university boarding became 8.2% more expensive compared to the previous year.

The increase in miscellaneous goods & services was driven by higher health insurance premiums, recorded in February. The average price of health insurance rose by 12.9% in 2024.

March Food Inflation

Food and non-alcoholic beverages (NAB) inflation decreased to 5.1% in March from 6.1% in February, marking a three-and-a-half-year low. This is down from its recent peak of 14,0% in March 2023.

Bread & cereals inflation softened to 5.0% from the previous month’s 6.1%. This is significantly lower than the peak of 21.8% in January 2023.

Meat prices also decreased, with an annual rate of 0.8% in March compared to a peak of 11.4% in February 2023.

Sugar, sweets & desserts continued to experience high inflation, with a rate of 17.8% in March, driven by significant increases in brown sugar, white sugar, and chocolate products.

Other notable consumer price increases in March included:

• Alcohol & tobacco prices increased by 1.9%, driven by excise tax hikes
• Housing rents rose by 0.8%
• Transport costs increased by 2.0%, mainly due to fuel price rises of 5.3%

READ MORE: Inflation: Food Prices, Insurance Costs Soar