By Thebe Mabanga
Consumer inflation accelerated more sharply than expected to 5% in June from 4.5% in May, reaching its highest level in two years as steep fuel increases spread into public transport costs, Statistics South Africa said on Wednesday.
The reading was the highest since June 2024, when inflation stood at 5.1%. Consumer prices increased by 0.7% between May and June, matching the monthly rise recorded in May.
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Transport was the largest driver of inflation, with prices rising by 12.7% from a year earlier and contributing 1.7 percentage points to the headline rate. The fuel index climbed by 34.3% year-on-year, reflecting increases of 50.8% for diesel and 31.7% for petrol.
The fuel surge filtered into passenger transport, where prices increased by 8.1% in June alone and were 12.5% higher than a year
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