JOHANNESBURG, April 22 (Xinhua) -- South Africa's annual consumer price inflation rose slightly to 3.1 percent in March from 3.0 percent in February, Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) said on Wednesday.
According to Stats SA, the main contributors to annual inflation were housing and utilities, food and non-alcoholic beverages, as well as insurance and financial services. The consumer prices rose by 0.6 percent month on month in March.
Patrick Kelly, chief director for price statistics at Stats SA, said six of the 13 spending categories recorded increases in March, including education, restaurants and accommodation services, transport, housing and utilities, information and communication, and recreation, sport and culture.
Education remained one of the key upward drivers, with tuition fees rising by 5.4 percent in 2026, compared with a 4.5-percent increase last year. Private education posted the highest increase at 7.5 percent, followed by primary and secondary education at 6.2 percent and tertiary education at 4.2 percent.
In the transport category, the annual rate rose to negative 1.6 percent in March from negative 2.1 percent in February, indicating that prices were still lower than a year earlier, although the pace of decline slowed.
Kelly said the March data was collected before the fuel price increases that took effect on April 1, while lower fuel prices over the past 12 months helped keep transport inflation in negative territory.
Meanwhile, annual inflation for food and non-alcoholic beverages eased further to 3.6 percent in March, down from 3.7 percent in February and 4.4 percent in January.
Kelly said four categories in the food and non-alcoholic beverages basket were in deflation in March, including fruits and nuts, vegetables, cereal products, and milk, other dairy products and eggs. The milk, other dairy products and eggs category recorded its 10th consecutive month of deflation, at negative 0.5 percent in March, compared with negative 0.7 percent in February.
Stats SA also said annual inflation for goods stood at 1.8 percent in March, down from 1.9 percent in February, while services inflation accelerated to 4.2 percent from 3.8 percent. ■