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Inflation hits lowest level in six months, fuels hopes for rate cut in SeptSouth Africa’s inflation rate fell slightly in June, touching a six-month low and potentially encouraging the central bank to consider cutting borrowing costs later this year.
Consumer prices rose 5.1% in June from a year earlier, compared with 5.2% in the prior month, Pretoria-based Statistics South Africa said Wednesday in a statement on its website. That matched the median of 16 economists’ estimates in a Bloomberg survey.
Contributing to the change was a 4.6% rise in the food and non-alcoholic beverages category, which was the slowest gain since September 2020.
Transport inflation cooled to 5.5%, from 6.3% in the prior month, while the new vehicle category slowed to 5.2%, coming down from a peak of 8.4% in September 2023, indicating weak demand.
The rand weakened slightly to trade at 18.38 per dollar at 10:35 a.m. in Johannesburg. Yields on government bonds were little changed after the release of the data, with the 10-year benchmark yielding 10.89%.
-REUTERS-