South Africa’s annual inflation rate edged up to 3.1% in March 2026 from 3% in the prior month, matching market expectations. In March, the impact of the Middle East conflict was only starting to feed into domestic prices. The main positive contributors were housing & utilities (5.1% vs 4.8% in February); food & non-alcoholic beverages (3.6% vs 3.7%) and insurance and financial services (4.6% vs 4.5%). In the meantime, prices fell at a slower pace for transportation (-1.6% vs -2.1%). The annual core inflation rate, which excludes food, non-alcoholic beverages, fuel, and energy, rose to 3.2% from a seven-month low of 3.0% in the prior month. On a monthly basis, the CPI rose by 0.6%, after a 0.4% increase in the prior month.