Key facts
- South Africa's headline inflation rate increased to 4.4% year-on-year in August.
- The August inflation rate was up from 4.3% in July.
- Economists had forecast inflation at 4.5% for August.
- Month-on-month headline inflation was unchanged in August.
South Africa's headline consumer inflation rate edged up to 4.4% year-on-year in August, a slight increase from 4.3% in July, data from the country's statistics agency revealed on Wednesday. The actual inflation rate was below the 4.5% expected by economists surveyed by Reuters. On a month-on-month basis, headline inflation remained flat in August, contrasting with a 0.2% increase seen in July.