The repo rate is to remain unchanged at 5.75%, Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago said.

The Reserve Bank has decided to raise the repo rate by 25 basis points, taking it to 5.75%, Governor Gill Marcus said on Thursday.

The decision by the Monetary Policy Committee to increase interest rates may be unfortunate for the commercial property sector.

The Reserve Bank has kept the repo rate unchanged at 5% per annum, it said on Thursday.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) came in at 6.3% year-on-year in July, Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) said on Wednesday.

The Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) left the repo rate unchanged at 5,0%, in line with the market expectations.

While inflationary concerns appear in the main to be contained at present, further stimulus for the South African economy in terms of a rate cut would have been a welcome move

"The monetary policy stance remains accommodative and appropriate, with the real policy rate remaining slightly negative. Further accommodation at this stage is constrained by the upside risks to the inflation outlook.

It must have been one of the more interesting Monetary Policy Committee meetings, at which labour intruded yet more centrally, changing the playing field, with as yet to be tested consequences down the road.

The Gross Domestic Product for the third quarter is expected to come in lower than the growth seen in the second quarter, largely due to recent industrial action in the mining sector.