Hits&Misses

Inflation eases slightly, but load-shedding wreaks havoc

INFLATION eased in August, declining from a 13-year high in July, when the war in Ukraine and pandemic-linked supply shortages sent food and fuel prices surging. Stats SA said annual inflation slid to 7.6% from 7.8% in July as lower fuel prices more than cancelled out higher food and electricity costs. The reading is slightly higher than the Reuters consensus of 7.5%.

CITY Lodge cut its fullyear headline loss by 89% as leisure and business travel picked up after the lifting of lockdown restrictions. The hotel group reported a headline loss of R49.5m in the year to end-June, compared with one of R455.2m in the previous comparable period, as average occupancies improved to 38% from 19%.

JSE -listed self-storage real estate investment trust Stor-Age will become the latest property company to be listed on the A2X when its shares start trading on the alternative exchange on Tuesday. This will bring the total number of companies on the alternative exchange to 72.

THE Reserve Bank raised borrowing costs at the steepest rate in two decades for a second consecutive time, returning the repo rate to its January 2020 level before the Bank unleashed an extraordinary stimulus to keep the economy afloat during the pandemic. The 75 basis point increase comes despite it reducing its GDP growth forecast for 2022 from 2% in July to 1.9% following a secondquarter contraction.

AGRI SA warned that escalating load-shedding was having dire consequences on export commodities, leading to late shipments and putting SA’s standing as a reliable market source in the balance. It also warned of future food shortages and high food prices if the situation continued. BUSINESS activity was under significant pressure in July, falling the most in 10 months, as SA grappled with loadshedding. The Reserve Bank’s composite leading business cycle indicator, which projects SA’s economic growth cycle for the next 6-12 months, fell 1% month on month.