South Africans became richer in 2025 due to a 37.7% rise in the domestic stock market. This was its best annual performance since 2005. The rand outperformed the US dollar in 2025. This means that in US dollar terms, the JSE All-Share Index (LSE) is up 55.3% in 2025, significantly outperforming its emerging and developed market peers.
South African Reserve Bank The data shows that this resulted in an increase in the net wealth of households in 2025. The increase in total assets exceeds total liabilities. The higher value of assets was largely the result of increased equity holdings.
This mostly helped higher income groups, but lower income groups also benefited as their pension fund contributions are invested in equities. Accordingly, the ratio of net assets to disposable income increased from 398% in 2024 to 425% in 2025.
household expenditure
As South Africans become wealthier in 2025, they can afford more. Therefore, real household final consumption expenditure grew by only 1.0% in 2024 to 3.6% in 2025.
The major beneficiaries of this increased wealth were retailers Of durable goods. Expenditure growth on durable goods to increase from 3.2% in 2024 to 6.2% in 2025. Durable goods last more than five years. These include things like cars, furniture, consumer electronics and computers.
Semi-durable goods such as clothing, textiles, glassware, motorcar tyres, parts and accessories also gained. Spending on these items increased by 5.3% in 2025, up from only 0.6% in 2024.
Non-durable goods such as food, beverages, tobacco household fuel, electricity, water as well as medical and pharmaceutical products are expected to see the slowest growth in 2025. As a result, growth was only 2.5% in 2025, up from 1.0% in 2024.
Services such as transport, communication, fares, entertainment, recreation and education are expected to grow by 3.3% in 2025 from 0.6% in 2024.
The South African Reserve Bank stated that although household spending on gambling, particularly online betting, has increased significantly in recent years, its contribution to total household spending is minimal and relatively insignificant compared to spending on essential goods and services.
household debt
Although South Africans became richer in 2025, some of this wealth remained only on paper. This means consumers borrowed more to spend more. As a result, household debt increased further in the fourth quarter of 2025. This increase was due to sharp growth in most categories of loans to households.
Therefore, household debt as a percentage of nominal disposable income increased from 61.5% in the third quarter to 61.8% in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Despite the increase in debt, the cost of servicing debt relative to households' disposable income declined to 8.4% in Q4 2025 from 8.5% in Q3. On an annual basis, growth in household credit slowed marginally to 4.3% in 2025 from 4.5% in 2024.
Household debt as a percentage of nominal disposable income to decline from 62.7% in 2024 to 61.9% in 2025. This was because the annual growth in nominal disposable income of households was greater than the growth in household debt.
Similarly, the cost of debt servicing relative to households' disposable income declined from 9.2% in 2024 to 8.6% in 2025. This easing largely reflected the reduction in interest rates.