The economic fallout from COVID-19 affected many industries, including South Africa’s tourism sector. A decline in revenue from domestic (resident) visitors and inbound (non-resident) visitors, exacerbated by stringent travel restrictions, saw a fall in tourism trips, tourism-related expenditure, and employment. The sector has shown signs of recovering from the pandemic’s repercussions. The latest Tourism Satellite   read more »

South Africa’s economy grew by a marginal 0,1%1 in the fourth quarter (October–December), taking the annual growth rate for 2023 to 0,6%. Real gross domestic product (GDP) in the fourth quarter was R1 158 billion. This is above the pre-COVID-19 reading of R1 150 billion, but still below the peak of R1 161 billion recorded in the third quarter   read more »

February is a highlight of Stats SA’s publication schedule, with the release of various economic indicators for December concluding the results for the previous year. The preliminary data point to a lacklustre 2023, with several indicators in the red (Figure 1). Mining production, electricity generation, construction (the value of buildings completed as reported by large municipalities),   read more »

The producer price indices (PPIs) for January 2024 will reflect updates to the basket and weights and will be rebased to December 2023 = 100. The weights determine what products should comprise the basket of goods that create the elementary indices of the PPI. The number of products in final and intermediate manufacturing combined will   read more »

After two consecutive months of decline, annual consumer inflation crept up in January, rising to 5,3% from 5,1% in December. The monthly change in the consumer price index (CPI) was 0,1% in January. The categories in the CPI basket with the largest annual price increases were restaurants & hotels at 8,0%, food & non-alcoholic beverages   read more »

According to the Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES, Q3:2023) survey released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), total employment in the formal non-agricultural sector increased by 31 000 in the third quarter of 2023, bringing the level of employment to almost 10,2 million. The survey showed that 256 000 jobs were added between September 2022 and September   read more »

Live birth statistics provide a crucial glimpse into the dynamics of human populations, offering valuable insights into demographics, healthcare trends, and societal changes. Understanding live birth statistics is not merely an exercise in number-crunching; it is a gateway to comprehending the health and wellbeing of populations. The data on Recorded Live Births indicates that the   read more »

The mining industry’s contribution to total turnover in the South African formal business sector has increased over the years. A comprehensive time series, available from the Annual Financial Statistics (AFS) statistical release, provides a breakdown of how the turnover pie has shifted over the years. The survey reference period for the latest AFS (i.e. AFS   read more »

After two consecutive quarters of growth, South African real gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by 0,2% in the third quarter (July–September) of 2023.1 The contributions to the performance of the economy were evenly spread between the industries on the production side of the economy. The contributions ranged from -0,3 of a percentage point to +0,1   read more »

Stats SA published 25 statistical releases in November. Here is a quick overview of the latest economic indicators. Employment surpasses pre-COVID-19 levels Covering a sample of about 30 000 households across the country, the Quarterly Labour Force Survey reported a rise in employment figures in the South African workforce. The economy created 399 000 jobs in the   read more »