Producer prices in South Africa increased 6.4 percent year-on-year in May 2019, compared to a 6.5 percent rise in the prior month and market expectations of a 6.3 percent gain. Prices slowed for coke, petroleum, chemical, rubber & plastic products (10.7% vs 11.7% in April); metals, machinery & computer equipment (5.7% vs 6%) and paper & printed products (7.3% vs 7.5%). Meantime, cost advanced at the same pace for food, beverages & tobacco (4.5%) and textiles, clothing & footwear (4.2%). In contrast, prices rose faster for transport equipment (6.5% vs 6.3%); non-metallic mineral products (6.8% vs 4.4%); electrical machinery & communication (1.7% vs 1.4%) and furnishings (4.7% vs 3.1%). On a monthly basis, producer prices went up 0.5 percent, easing from a 1.3 percent rise in April and matching market consensus, mainly led by coke, petroleum, chemical, rubber & plastic products (1.3% vs 3.7%). Producer Prices Change in South Africa averaged 5.74 percent from 2013 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 8.80 percent in April of 2014 and a record low of 2.61 percent in February of 2015.
Producer Prices Change in South Africa is expected to be 6.70 percent by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. Looking forward, we estimate Producer Prices Change in South Africa to stand at 5.60 in 12 months time. In the long-term, the South Africa Producer Prices Change is projected to trend around 5.20 percent in 2020, according to our econometric models.