FX.co ★ South Africa’s PPI Turns Positive in December, Signalling Mild Upward Price Pressure

South Africa’s Producer Price Index (PPI) edged back into positive territory in December 2025, rising 0.2% month-over-month after remaining flat at 0.0% in November 2025. The latest data, updated on 29 January 2026, marks a mild but notable shift in wholesale price dynamics at the factory gate.

On a month-over-month basis, the December reading indicates that producer prices grew modestly compared with November, when there was no overall change versus the prior month. The comparison framework shows that while November’s PPI failed to register any movement, December brought a slight uptick, suggesting emerging cost pressures in the production pipeline.

Although the increase is small, the move from zero to 0.2% may be watched by markets and policymakers as an early indication of changing input costs that could eventually feed through to consumer prices if the trend persists in the coming months.