Category Archives: Economy Data Stories

To bean or not to bean – a look at the price of your cup of coffee

To bean or not to bean – a look at the price of your cup of coffee   Coffee. The lifeblood of many. The cup that jumpstarts your morning. The lack thereof creates zombies in offices across the world daily. The joys of drinking coffee are beautifully expressed in Johann Sebastian Bach’s Coffee Cantata, which   read more »


Four facts you might not have known about the manufacturing industry

Four facts you might not have known about the manufacturing industry

Recently released data from Stats SA provide fresh insight into South Africa’s manufacturing industry. In 2014, Stats SA conducted a large sample survey of the industry, covering about 15 000 enterprises. The results of the survey – containing detailed information on income, employment, capital expenditure, salaries and production – were recently published in two reports: Manufacturing   read more »


You can’t teach a hungry child: school nutrition in focus

You can’t teach a hungry child: school nutrition in focus

School feeding programmes contribute to the well-being and education of children, according to the United Nations World Food Programme1. Stats SA takes a look at data on hunger in South Africa and explores the reach and cost of South Africa’s National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP). South Africans are less hungry than they were 13 years   read more »


South African manufacturing production and the rand (an update)

South African manufacturing production and the rand (an update)

Industry growth rates depend on many factors, and the South African manufacturing industry is no exception. The state of the local and global economy and the rand exchange rate are some of the factors that are watched closely when assessing the performance of manufacturing production.   Figure 1 shows the severe impact of the global   read more »


Media Announcement: Consumer Price Index (P0141) August 2016 – Release date 21 September 2016

Media Announcement                                                                                        13 September 2016   Consumer Price Index (P0141) August 2016 – Release date 21 September 2016 Not all items in the CPI are surveyed each month. A detailed survey schedule of the items that are not surveyed monthly is available in Table F of the monthly publication. Lotto tickets (Recreation and   read more »


Media Announcement: Producer Price Index for July published one hour late due to server downtime

Media Announcement                                                                                        13 September 2016   Producer Price Index for July published one hour late due to server downtime The Producer Price Index (PPI) for July 2016 was scheduled to be published on 25 August 2016 at 11:30 am.  The release fell in the week during which Stats SA’s offices were being   read more »


Positive GDP growth in the second quarter of 2016

Positive GDP growth in the second quarter of 2016

South Africa’s economy grew by 3,3% quarter-on-quarter (seasonally adjusted and annualised), according to estimates of real gross domestic product (measured by production). This is the fastest quarter-on-quarter rise in economic activity since the fourth quarter of 2014. Year-on-year growth in the second quarter of 2016 was 0,6%. The mining and manufacturing industries contributed over half   read more »


Mid-Year Estimates 2016

Mid-Year Estimates 2016

55,9 million people in South Africa:  Planning for a better tomorrow The population of South Africa is estimated to be 55, 9 million by end June 2016. Between 2002 and 2016 South Africa experienced a positive population growth year on year. Between 2002 and 2016, there was an overall increase in Life expectancy (55,2 to   read more »


A ten-year snapshot of business profitability in South Africa

A ten-year snapshot of business profitability in South Africa

How well have South African businesses performed? This can be a complicated question that can be tackled with a range of indicators. From the wealth of financial data available from the recently published Quarterly Financial Statistics (QFS), Stats SA takes a look at one such indicator: the profit margin ratio.   A limitation of financial   read more »


The secret life of a slab of chocolate

The secret life of a slab of chocolate

You might celebrate World Chocolate Day today (7 July) by sitting back and feasting on your favourite slab of sugary goodness. At Stats SA, we love our chocolate. But we also love data and all things statistical. So, to honour today, we’ve teased out a few facts about the price of chocolate that you, as   read more »