South Africa’s merchandise export volumes helped to improve business confidence in July, although crude-oil volatility and inflation continued to weigh on the country’s economic outlook.
The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (SACCI) Business Confidence Index rose by 1.9 points month on month to 125.4 in July.
The index was also 8.7 points higher than in July 2025 and appeared to have stabilised after declining sharply in April, SACCI said.
Higher merchandise export volumes, increased new-vehicle sales and lower energy prices made the largest positive monthly contributions to the index.
Increased merchandise import volumes also helped to support business confidence compared with the previous year.
However, higher inflation and a monthly decline in global precious-metal prices weighed on the July reading.
The negative effect of the sharp rise in crude-oil prices in April had subsided, but oil prices remained a risk to international trade and South Africa’s business environment, SACCI said.
International commodity prices continued to play a significant role in the country’s trade performance. High precious-metal prices supported the business climate over the year, while crude-oil prices had a negative effect.
Agricultural producers also faced uncertainty over market access under the African Growth and Opportunity Act and had to negotiate favourable arrangements for specific products, according to the chamber.
South Africa’s improved creditworthiness and investment ratings provided some support, but slow economic growth, inflation and a stricter monetary-policy stance continued to constrain the business environment, said SACCI.
