|
Related Topics |
|
We take a look at South Africa's latest consumer price index (CPI) data for November 2018 and find that annual consumer price inflation was 5,2% in November 2018, up from 5,1% in October 2018. The consumer price index increased by 0,2% month-on-month in November 2018.
|
|
Dragable pie chart for South Africa's November 2018 inflation
So usually we provide details in South Africa's inflation on a map of South Africa where we show the inflation rate per province on a interactive map (See our Inflation Heat Map page for more). But in this article we will take a look at the main categories within the South African consumer price index "basket" of goods and services and their contribution to the 5.2% year on year inflation for November 2018.
The pie chart on the left hand side shows the 10 categories that contributed to South Africa's 5.2% year on year inflation in November 2018. And just to make things interesting for readers, one can select any of the categories and drag it over to the right hand pie chart. It then recalculates the relative contribution of the various groups that are still left in the left hand pie chart's contribution to the total of all the groups left. Just something fun to play around with.
The pie chart on the left hand side shows the 10 categories that contributed to South Africa's 5.2% year on year inflation in November 2018. And just to make things interesting for readers, one can select any of the categories and drag it over to the right hand pie chart. It then recalculates the relative contribution of the various groups that are still left in the left hand pie chart's contribution to the total of all the groups left. Just something fun to play around with.
The main contributors to South Africa's inflation rate for November 2018 and their relative contribution to the 5.2% is shown below:
- Food and non-alcoholic beverages: 0,6
- Alcoholic beverages and tobacco : 0,3
- Clothing and footwear: 0,1
- Housing and utilities: 1,3
- Household contents and services: 0,1
- Health :0,1
- Transport: 1,5
- Education:0,2
- Restaurants and hotels : 0,1
- Miscellaneous goods and services 0,9
- All Items 5,2
Scrolling over the slices in the pie chart, the two big contributors to South Africa's November 2018 inflation rate are:
The three main categories mentioned above contributed over 70% of the total inflation number for South Africa during November 2018. Taking a quick look at the inflation rates of the various provinces of South Africa:
For the last 21 months the Western Cape has had the highest inflation rate of any of the provinces in South Africa, and according to Statistics South Africa it is due to the high rental increases in the provinces. As rent is used as a proxy to estimate the cost of housing in the CPI basket. But with rental increases being heavily inflated in South Africa we believe the higher than usual inflation in the Western Cape is artificial in nature, but the worry is the fact that the Western Cape is one of the bigger provinces in South Africa and if their inflation rate is inflated artificially due to the rental bubble in the province it is likely that the overall CPI of South Africa is being overestimated, which has a significant impact on South Africa's monetary policy.
- Transport: 1.5 (or 28.8% of the total CPI in November 2018)
- Housing and utilities: 1.3 (or 25% of the total CPI in November 2018)
The three main categories mentioned above contributed over 70% of the total inflation number for South Africa during November 2018. Taking a quick look at the inflation rates of the various provinces of South Africa:
- Western Cape: 5.7%
- Eastern Cape: 4.9%
- Northern Cape: 4.4%
- Free State: 4.7%
- KwaZulu-Natal: 4.5%
- North-West: 4.4%
- Gauteng: 5.4%
- Mpumalanga: 4.8%
- Limpopo:4.3%
For the last 21 months the Western Cape has had the highest inflation rate of any of the provinces in South Africa, and according to Statistics South Africa it is due to the high rental increases in the provinces. As rent is used as a proxy to estimate the cost of housing in the CPI basket. But with rental increases being heavily inflated in South Africa we believe the higher than usual inflation in the Western Cape is artificial in nature, but the worry is the fact that the Western Cape is one of the bigger provinces in South Africa and if their inflation rate is inflated artificially due to the rental bubble in the province it is likely that the overall CPI of South Africa is being overestimated, which has a significant impact on South Africa's monetary policy.