Municipal financial systems have been overhauled. Under the new Municipal Standard Chart of Accounts (mSCOA) framework, municipalities have changed the way in which they do their finances. As a result, Stats SA implemented changes to its Quarterly financial statistics of selected municipalities (QFSSM) survey. What is the QFSSM? Not only does Stats SA publish data   read more »

Annual consumer inflation held steady at 5,7% in February, unchanged from 5,7% in January. Rising food and transport prices put upward pressure on the monthly rate, with the consumer price index (CPI) increasing by 0,6% between January and February. This CPI release is the second to be compiled using the recently updated weights and basket   read more »

18 March 2022 Professor David Everatt, Chairperson, on behalf of the South African Statistics Council David.everatt@wits.ac.za, 0834559466 Stats SA is a globally recognised centre of excellence for producing official statistics. Stats SA is the only source of official statistics in South Africa. It has kept in touch with or led best practice across a wide   read more »

Consumers breathed a little easier in January as headline inflation dipped to 5,7% from 5,9% in December. The softer rate was the result of lower fuel prices that decreased by 2,8% from record highs in December. Prices for passenger transport were also lower. Explore inflation, as well as other stories, in this edition of Stats   read more »

The composition of the inflation basket tells us a lot about the spending patterns of consumers. In the most recent update of the basket, fourteen new items were added, while two items were removed. Gin, which has become a more popular beverage in recent times, is one of the new items. Explore the inflation basket,   read more »

Note: The original version of this article, published on 1 December 2021, was based on fuel price adjustments announced by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) on 29 November. On 1 December, the DMRE made changes to these adjustments. This article was revised on 2 December 2021 to reflect these changes. Fuel prices   read more »

Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) is the official agency that measures South Africa’s inflation rate. Up until now, Stats SA has been collecting price information for categories of products typically purchased in retail outlets through field workers who have been using paper questionnaires. However, starting from the first quarter of 2022, Stats SA will be   read more »

It all started with the Pieter Faure. This relatively small, unassuming ship, built in Scotland, laid the foundation for the development of South Africa’s commercial, ocean fishing industry as we know it today. John Gilchrist might not have guessed the extent of the contribution he would make when he boarded the Pieter Faure in 1897.   read more »

Education inflation recorded its lowest annual rate in three decades, according to the latest consumer inflation data. Education fees increased by 4,1% in 2021, the lowest annual increase since at least 1991. Explore the cost of education, as well as other stories, in this edition of Stats Biz. Download Stats Biz – April 2021

Stats SA’s Gross domestic product (GDP) release for the fourth quarter of 2020 (October–December) concludes the series for the year, providing a sobering overview of 2020.   Manufacturing and trade help lift growth in the fourth quarter The economy grew by 1,5% in the fourth quarter, giving an annualised1 growth rate of 6,3%. This follows   read more »