By Anait Miridzhanian.
South Africa’s headline consumer inflation quickened to 7.6% year on year in October from 7.5% in September, data from Statistics South Africa showed on Wednesday.
The rise comes after South Africa’s headline consumer inflation slowed for a second month in a row in September.
On a month-on-month basis, consumer inflation was at 0.4% in October from 0.1% in the previous month.
Core inflation, which excludes prices of food, non-alcoholic beverages, fuel and energy, rose to 5.0% year on year in October, from 4.7% previously. On a month-on-month basis core inflation was at 0.5% in October, same as the previous month.
In early November, the central bank governor said South Africa needed to get inflation expectations more anchored around the midpoint of its 3%-6% target range as it still had space to raise interest rates.
The bank has raised rates at the last six monetary policy meetings since its latest tightening cycle began in November 2021. Its next rate decision is due on Thursday.
A Reuters poll found last week that South Africa’s Reserve Bank will hike its repo rate another 75 basis points to 7.00% to reinforce its action over sticky and uncomfortably high inflation.