South Africa CPI Cools in February, Unlikely to Prompt Rate Cut

South African inflation eased in February, but the central bank is unlikely to view this as a reason to cut interest rates next week as it weighs the impact of conflict in the Middle East.

Consumer prices rose 3% year-on-year compared with 3.5% a month earlier, Pretoria-based Statistics South Africa said in a statement on Wednesday. The median estimate of 15 economists in a Bloomberg survey was 3.1%.