Good rains and prospects for a bumper crop have pulled South African maize prices to two-and-a-half-year lows and while the bottom may be near, analysts say inflation should start slowing as a result in the third quarter of 2017. This will ease the burden on poor households and may give the Reserve Bank room to hold or cut rates. The flip side is meat prices, which could accelerate after drought-induced culls in 2016 reduced cattle numbers. The July white maize contract fell more than 4% on Wednesday to a two-and-a-half-year low of R1,817/tonne after the Crop Estimates Committee forecast a 2017 harvest of 13.918-million tonnes, 79% more than in 2016. That forecast was 6% higher than expectations of 13.11-million tonnes. Domestic consumption is between 10-million and 11-million tonnes. Cold weather, rains and resilient genetically modified crops (GMO) have also limited the damage caused by an armyworm outbreak. The region offers potential export markets. Neighbouring Zimbabwe has bee...
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