Producer price inflation in South Africa slowed for the second consecutive month, easing to 5.7% in July 2026 from 7.5% in June and undershooting market expectations of 6.1%. The deceleration was driven largely by weaker price increases for coal and petroleum products, which rose 24.4% year-on-year compared with 38.8% in June. Within this category, fuel costs moderated notably: diesel inflation slowed to 29.4% from 53.8%, while petrol inflation eased to 21.8% from 36.5%, reflecting lower global crude oil prices.
Price growth also softened in several other categories. Non-metallic mineral products increased 7.5% year-on-year, down from 11.5% in June. Paper and printed products rose 4.2%, compared with 8.5% previously, and textiles, clothing and footwear registered a 6.6% increase, edging down from 6.9%. In contrast, transport equipment prices shifted into deflation, falling 1.4% after a 0.6% rise in June.
On a month-on-month basis, the producer price index declined by 1.0% in July, following a 0.1% drop in the previous month.
