![\"infla1\"](\"https:\/\/www.statssa.gov.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/infla1.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nThe monthly change in the consumer price index (CPI) for September was 0,1%, lower than 0,2% recorded in August.<\/p>\n
For much of this year, inflation was mainly driven by sharp increases in food & non-alcoholic beverages (NAB) and fuel prices. The CPI excluding these two categories registered an annual increase of 4,9%, up from 4,6% in August, indicating that higher inflation has spread beyond these two groups.<\/p>\n
Fuel prices decline further<\/strong><\/p>\n Fuel prices declined by 6,4% between August and September. This slowed the annual rate to 34,1%, which is down from the high of 56,2% reported in July.<\/p>\n Food inflation shows signs of softening<\/strong><\/p>\n Although annual food & NAB inflation continues to accelerate, monthly price changes were softer in September. Annual food & NAB inflation increased to 11,9% from 11,3% in August. The 0,5% monthly increase, however, was lower than the 1,8% monthly rise recorded in August.<\/p>\n Bread & cereal and meat inflation showed a similar pattern. The annual rate for bread & cereals accelerated to a 13-year high of 19,3% in September. The monthly rate was 1,3%, softer than the 3,1% reading in August. Annual meat inflation increased from 9,2% to 9,9%, while the monthly reading slowed from 0,7% to 0,5%.<\/p>\n After sustained price increases during much of the year, the index for oils & fats tumbled by 6,1% between August and September. This dragged the annual rate down to 29,0% from 37,6% in August. Prices for sunflower oil decreased by 8,0% in the month, with the average price of a 750\u00a0ml bottle of cooking oil falling to R41,38 from a high of R45,33 in July. Despite this decrease, the price is still significantly higher than the R30,98 consumers paid in September 2021.<\/p>\n Notable price increases for rentals, clothing, accommodation services and personal care<\/strong><\/p>\n Data informing both actual and imputed rentals is included in the CPI every quarter. The annual rate for actual rentals in September was 2,8%, the highest reading since February 2020 (3,0%). Imputed rentals increased by 3,2%, the highest annual reading since August 2019 (3,3%).<\/p>\n Clothing and footwear prices increased by 2,8% from September 2021, the highest annual rise since August 2017 (2,9%). Prices for accommodation services1<\/sup> increased by 6,0% between August and September. This took the annual rate for accommodation services to 10,5%, the highest it has been since March 2014 (10,9%). Personal care products registered an annual rate of 8,3%, the highest since December 2009 (9,7%). The monthly increase for personal care products was 1,9%, more than double the 0,8% recorded in August.<\/p>\n Price increases currently hitting consumer pockets<\/strong><\/p>\n The charts below show the products that recorded the largest percentage price increases in September.<\/p>\n For more information, download the September 2022 CPI statistical release, time series data and average product prices here.<\/a><\/p>\n 1 <\/sup>Accommodation services includes hotels, bed & breakfast establishments and student residences.<\/p>\n Similar articles are available on the Stats SA website and can be accessed here<\/a>.<\/p>\n For a monthly overview of economic indicators and infographics, catch the latest edition of the Stats Biz newsletter here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Annual consumer price inflation slowed to 7,5% in September from 7,6% in August, edging further down from the 13-year high of 7,8% recorded in July. Fuel prices declined for a second consecutive month, contributing to the softer headline rate. The monthly change in the consumer price index (CPI) for September was 0,1%, lower than 0,2% read more »<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n