Looking at the Oneworld site and found following

DONE4 ZAR 48000
DONE5 ZAR 55200
DONE6 ZAR 64900

Is this a recent price increase ?

Yes - D fares up around 7%, A by 9 - 10%. Don't know when these were updated - must be within the last couple of days.

Looks like it could be. In this post Gardyloo listed the prices as:
ZAR 45,000
ZAR 51,500
ZAR 60,500
If it is an increase it isn't a gigantic one.

Perhaps to compensate for the weakening Rand?

But, at >10 Rand = $1 USD, it's still a great deal.

oneworld.com prices updated 2 December.

MRU gone through the roof. Almost double what I paid last year for an AONE5

Yes... discuss fares here on FT. See immediate (or eventual) fare increases.

Looks like South Korea now best for AONEx tix?

Well spotted. Obviously nobody on FT had a pending booking or presumably Mindpearl would have warned them of the imminent price increases.

Something oneworld4u could have done at the point that OW alert the agencies. Is it too harsh to suggest that this is just more evidence that the handle should be changed to oneworldFU?

Please. Not nice, and completely uncalled for. Do you know a lot of other retail merchants who tell you before they raise their prices? I don't. Perhaps you'd like AA to have telephoned everyone who had a DONEx or AONEx not yet ticketed to tell them of the pending increase?

Perhaps you should have bought your AONE4 a couple of months ago when they were selling at US$5,700 or so. I bought two at that price, -- no way it was going to stay at that level for long, and, in fact, it didn't.

I did have one reserved but not purchased just before the summer price increase. When I was talking with the AA RTW desk to change some flights, they told me that there was a rumor going around their office of a rate hike that night at midnight. I bought immediately, and, sure enough, prices went up overnight.

I saw several posts over the past few weeks in various fora speculating that due to the decline of the ZAR, there was bound to be a price increase. IMO, OW4U had no obligation to act contrary to his employer's interests by telling us.

In the past there has been a window period of a week or two when the information was made available. Once the agencies have been informed the information is in the public domain so I don't understand the argument about not informing peoiple with pending bookings. Many merchants do exactly that. Have you never encountered a "buy now before prices increase" advertisement? Are you are in the same breath saying that the AA RTW agent acted against his/her employer's interest by sharing a "rumour" with you?

Your blithe assumption that I have been caught short is also just plain wrong: I have no RTW trips planned but not booked, let alone booked but not ticketed.

My dig was more generally aimed at the fact that nothing useful has been forthcoming from the direction of OW4U in an awfully long time. At least he/she/they could have the grace to let us know that they've bowed out.

Perhaps he/she/they are too embarrassed to post as they quoted a "very soon" on the delivery of the online RTW booking engine - in JUNE.

Maybe the price rises are just a precursor for them to then announce the new tool.

On a few other spot checks,
Namibia up by as much as Sth Africa (circa 10%).
Mauritius has had a big increase (25-30%)

OW booking engine also released per other thread.