Politics
46th SADC Ordinary Summit to conclude
The Southern African Development Community’s (SADC) Summit will conclude on Monday in Durban, when South Africa will officially assume the chairpersonship of the SADC.
ANC to finally, finally, hopefully announce mayoral candidates before manifesto launch
The ANC delayed its announcement of its mayoral candidates by another week over the weekend, blaming a protracted selection process. This further delay has had a cascading effect, as the party had also hoped to install the candidates as current mayors and campaign ahead of the election. With under 80 days until election day, this plan has been abandoned.
The ANC is launching its manifesto this Sunday in Diepsloot, Johannesburg. The announcement of its mayoral candidates in key metros will have to take place by then, although some names are an open secret by now. These include the Rev. Frank Chikane in Johannesburg, Aaron Maluleka in Tshwane and eThekwini’s incumbent mayor Cyril Xaba.
Madlanga Commission to lay criminal charges against Carrim
The Commission announced its intention last Friday to lay criminal charges against North West businessman and ANC official Suliman Carrim for his repeated failure to appear before it. The Commission may give more details of the process this week, which will involve the South African Police Service.
Parliamentary calendar
The Impeachment Committee for Section 89 Enquiry, known informally as the Phala Phala impeachment committee, will meet on Wednesday to discuss the appointment of an evidence leader and consider the draft terms of reference.
Also on Wednesday, the Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements will be briefed by the Department on the amendments in the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful
Occupation of Land Bill (PIE Bill). The Bill seeks to amend the existing PIE Act and strengthen property rights, including the criminalisation of inciting land occupations.
Economics
SACCI Business Confidence Index (July 2026)
The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) will release July’s data for the Index on Monday morning. The index declined to 123.6 points in April, its lowest level in seven months, while May’s reading of 124.1 points signalled stability rather than recovery. Higher vehicle sales may pull the index up but rising producer inflation and lower tourism arrivals could weigh it down.
Consumer price index / inflation rate (July 2026)
Stats SA will release the latest CPI numbers on Wednesday morning. After a surprising interest rate hold by the Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee in July, it is not clear what level of inflation would move the Bank’s hand. June’s headline inflation rate was 5% year-on-year while core inflation was 4.1%. Both rates are expected to climb further in July, with headline inflation nearing 5.5%
Retail sales (June 2026)
On Wednesday afternoon Stats SA will release the June numbers for retail sales. Year-on-year growth in retail sales was 2.3%% in May, and base effects might push June’s growth higher but average real growth for 2026 is forecast at just 2.1% by the Bureau of Market Research.
The South Africa Brief in the news
The South Africa Brief, supported by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF) will publish the fourth article and podcast in our five-part series on the lead-up to the 2026 local government election (LGE). This week we look at the future of coalition politics with an article on Tuesday followed by a podcast on Thursday with Dr Sithembile Mbete.