Note to editors: Please find attached soundbite by Wendy Alexander MP
Today’s release by Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) of the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) data illustrates the financial strain that South Africans continue to experience and the continued battle to put food on the table.
This past month, our rate of inflation stood at 4.6%, down from 5.1% in June. While this is modestly within the South African Reserve Bank’s (SARB) inflation band of between 3% and 6%, this not only remains too high for the South African consumer, but also may not be enough for SARB to lower interest rates.
These statistics follow close on the heels of our latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS), which showed our official unemployment rate at an appalling 33.5% (42.6% on the expanded definition), as 8.3 million South Africans remain without jobs.
Within the CPI data, the main contributors were:
– Housing, which has increased by 5.3% year-on-year;
– Food, which has increased by 4.5% year-on-year;
– Transport, which has increased by 4.2% year-on-year; as well as
– Goods and Services, which have increased by 7% year-on-year.
As the Democratic Alliance, now represented in the Government of National Unity, we remain focused on alleviating our cost-of-living crisis. Already for South Africans, we have begun processes to expand the basket of VAT-free food items, as well as adapting the fuel price formula. These interventions will assist South Africans in relieving pressure in their food baskets and at the fuel pump.
There remains much more to be done, and we stand ready in full service to South Africans in building an affordable, thriving and inclusive economy for all.