The annual consumer price inflation (CPI), declined to 4,4% in August from 4,6% in July.
This is the lowest inflation print since April 2021 Statistics South Africa (StatsSA), said this week.
Risenga Maluleka, the Statistician- General, at StatsSA, said the main contributors to the 4,4% annual inflation rate were housing and utilities, which contributed about 4,8%.
Other contributing factors are miscellaneous goods and services at 7,0%, food and non-alcoholic beverages at 4,7% and transport at 2,8%.
He said in August 2024, the annual inflation rate of goods was 4,4%, down from 4,6% in July 2024; and services were down by 4,5% from 4,7% in July 2024.
StatsSA is also planning to adjust the classification used in the CPI.
” In January 2025, classification of goods and services monitored, will be based on results of the income and expenditure survey.”
This action by StatsSA, is in line with the United Nations Statistics Division’s adoption of an updated version of the Classification of individual consumption by purpose, known as COICOP 18.
The current version of COICOP was adopted in 1999 and first used in the South African CPI in 2008.
The new version, however, should reflect changes in consumer expenditure patterns, including the impact of new technology.
The greater details now available will improve the international comparability of economic data.