South African inflation edged up to 4.4% year-on-year in August from 4.3% in July, a smaller rise than the 4.5% that economists forecast. According to Statistics South Africa, the increase was driven by transport, housing and utilities, and insurance and financial services, with food inflation among the lowest rates, at 1.1%. Core inflation, which excludes volatile items such as food and energy, eased to 4.1%, slightly below expectations. Even though inflation remains above the bank’s 3% target, most analysts still expect it to raise its policy rate by 25 basis points to 7.25%. Economists said the modest data would not change the decision, and a strong harvest should keep food costs contained despite a possible El Niño.