South Africa’s economy grew by a marginal 0,1% in the fourth quarter, taking the annual growth rate for 2023 to 0,6%. Six of the ten industries kept the economy afloat, with the transport, storage & communication industry making the biggest positive impact. On the downside, trade, agriculture, construction and government were weaker. Explore the latest read more »
Recent data provide a complete overview of how consumer inflation behaved in 2023. The average inflation rate for the year was 6,0%, lower than 2022’s 6,9%. Inflation was relatively hot in the first five months of 2023 (January–May), with the headline rate consistently above 6,0%. The rate then dipped below this level for the remaining read more »
Real gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by 0,2% in the third quarter of 2023. This followed two consecutive quarters of growth. On the production side of the economy, five of the ten industries recorded weaker results in the third quarter, with agriculture, manufacturing and construction the biggest drags on growth. Explore the latest GDP figures, read more »
Municipalities that provide services often buy electricity from producers (such as Eskom) and then resell the power to households, businesses and other institutions. Local government spent R50,2 billion on electricity purchases in the first six months of 2023. In turn, they generated R60,0 billion from electricity sales. The R9,8 billion difference between the two represents read more »
After a two-year hiatus, Stats SA released an experimental set of provincial gross domestic product (GDP) data. Gauteng may be the smallest of the nine provinces in terms of area size, but it has the largest economy. In fact, Gauteng’s economy is larger than the economies of KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape combined. Explore the latest read more »
Investments in energy infrastructure were detected in the latest set of gross domestic product (GDP) figures. The demand side of the economy saw a sharp rise in capital spending on machinery & equipment in the second quarter, which included products related to renewable energy. This was reflected by import data, with the country recording an read more »
Employee costs take up a sizable chunk of municipal spending. Staff remuneration costs accounted for 28% of total municipal expenditure in 2022, according to recent data from Stats SA. The aggregate proportion of 28% falls within the National Treasury norm of 25%‒40%. A more nuanced picture emerges if we map all 257 municipalities. Explore local read more »
One of the important tasks of national government is to redistribute funds, mainly received from taxes, to other sectors of the economy. A large portion of national government spending was in the form of financial transfers to households, public corporations, organisations and other levels of government. Explore government spending, as well as other stories, in read more »
The South African economy expanded by 0,4% in the first quarter of 2023, with manufacturing and finance being the major drivers of growth on the supply side of the economy. The demand side was lifted by exports, with smaller positive contributions for household, government, and investment spending. Explore the latest gross domestic product (GDP) figures, read more »
Anecdotes about steep property price rises in Cape Town are not without merit. Stats SA’s new residential property price index (RPPI) compares how housing prices have increased since 2010 across the eight metropolitan municipalities and nine provinces. Since 2010, residential property prices have grown by 141% in the Mother City. Explore property prices, as well read more »