RFA Breakfast Paper - August 27, 2026
South Africa’s Producer Inflation Eases Further on Lower Energy Costs
Producer price inflation in South Africa eased for a second consecutive month to 5.7% year-on-year in July 2026, down from 7.5% in June and below the expected 6.1%, reflecting a broad moderation in upstream price pressures. The slowdown was driven primarily by a sharp deceleration in coal and petroleum product inflation, which fell to 24.4% from 38.8%, with diesel and petrol price inflation slowing to 29.4% from 53.8% and 21.8% from 36.5%, respectively, following the decline in global crude oil prices. Price growth also moderated across non-metallic mineral products (7.5% vs. 11.5%), paper and printed products (4.2% vs. 8.5%), and textiles, clothing and footwear (6.6% vs. 6.9%), while transport equipment prices fell 1.4%, compared with a 0.6% increase in June. On a monthly basis, producer prices declined by 1.0%, following a 0.1% decline in June. Overall, the sharper moderation in producer inflation provides further evidence that the earlier energy-driven cost shock is fading, potentially easing pipeline inflationary pressures and supporting the South African Reserve Bank’s efforts to bring inflation back toward its 3% target.
Nvidia Surge Lifts U.S. Stocks Higher
U.S. equities advanced, with the S&P 500 up 0.72% and the Nasdaq Composite up 1.57%, as a bullish outlook from Nvidia reignited the artificial-intelligence trade. Nvidia jumped about 8.7% after guiding to roughly 70% revenue growth next fiscal year, lifting the wider chip and technology complex. Gains were tempered by a hotter-than-expected July PCE print of 3.7%, which lifted the 10-year Treasury yield to 4.67% and pared expectations for a near-term Federal Reserve rate cut ahead of Chair Warsh's Jackson Hole speech.
NGX Rebounds as Banking Stocks Rally
The Nigerian Exchange snapped a two-week slide, with the All-Share Index rising 0.20% to 239,156.09 and market capitalisation up ₦305.56 billion to ₦154.44 trillion. Banking stocks led the rebound, the sector index climbing 1.58% as bargain-hunters returned to FirstHoldCo, AccessCorp, UBA and Zenith Bank after recent heavy selling. Breadth stayed negative, however, with 19 gainers against 38 losers, pointing to a selective rather than broad recovery. The large-cap NGX 30 lagged, easing 0.10% to 8,754.42 as weakness in consumer-goods and oil & gas names offset the banking bounce, leaving the market's year-to-date gain near 53%.
