Temperatures across the country have begun to drop; this tells us that winter is here. As a result, many households and companies are starting to use electrical appliances to keep the cold away. This usually results in higher electricity bills. One of the ways in which consumers can cut high electricity costs is through house insulation. The process of house insulation involves sealing off areas where air leaks in such as ceilings, windows and doors (some place door tubes under the door). In winter, the outside temperature is often lower than the temperature inside the houses and since heat transfer takes place from inside to outside the house, the interior of the house ends up cold. Thus when windows and doors are completely shut, the warm air inside is prevented from leaking out and vice versa. Hopefully, this information will help you cut costs and keep warm this winter.

In this month’s issue of Mbalo Brief, our educational article is based on the Mining industry report, 2015 (Report No. 20-01-02). Some of the aspects that the article explores include income and expenditure in the mining sector as well as employment, salaries and wages.

Also included in this issue are our monthly articles such as Consumer price index (CPI), Retail trade sales, Mining: Production and sales and Food and beverages. There are no latest figures for Wholesale trade sales this month. Remember to try out our monthly crossword puzzle and have a look at the solutions for the April 2017 puzzle.

Articles published in this issue are based on results of industry surveys conducted for the months ranging from February to March 2017, which were published by Stats SA in April and May 2017.

Download: Mbalo Brief – May 2017

For more details on any of the surveys, visit our website at: www.statssa.gov.za