Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago has announced that the repo rate is increasing by 75 basis points to 5.5 percent, meaning that the prime lending rate increases to nine percent.
Kganyago says Russia’s war in Ukraine is likely to persist and cause upward pressure on oil and other commodities that are produced by the two countries.
Repo rate announcement:
However, he says he expects inflation to return to the midpoint of the inflation target of around three percent in South Africa by 2024.
Stats SA on Wednesday announced that consumer inflation came in at a 13 year high of 7.4 percent, which was higher than expected.
Kganyago says the Monetary Policy Committee is keeping a close eye on inflation.
“In the second quarter of this year, headline inflation breached the target range and is expected to remain above it until the second quarter of 2023. Against this backdrop, the MPC decided to increase the repurchase rate by 75-basis points, to 5.5 percent per year, with effect from the 22nd of July 2022.”
