The South African economy moved into recession with the reported decrease of 0,7% in GDP during the first quarter of 2017, following a 0,3% contraction in the fourth quarter of 2016. Using the widely accepted measure of ‘recession’ as two (or more) consecutive quarters of negative growth (real GDP quarter-on-quarter), this means that South Africa   read more »

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   read more »

Kathu has a story to tell. Located in the rural expanse of the Northern Cape, this small town owes its existence almost entirely to iron ore. The streets, the businesses that line them, and the eleven thousand people that call Kathu home, all draw their economic lifeblood from Sishen, one of the largest open-pit mines   read more »

MEDIA ADVISORY                                                                                              6 April 2017   Formal sector employment statistics for the fourth quarter of 2016 to be released on Friday, 7 April 2017 on the Stats SA website   Statistics South Africa will tomorrow (Friday, 7 April 2017) release the Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) for the fourth quarter of 2016 on its website (www.statssa.gov.za).   read more »

The 1970s are best remembered for disco, bell-bottoms, and the mesmerising lava lamp. It was also the decade that saw South African mining forge ahead in its influence on the economy and employment. How has the economy in general, and mining in particular, shifted since then? Mining’s contribution to total economic production climbed in the   read more »

MEDIA ADVISORY                                                                                                                                                     30 March 2017 Statistician-General to release formal sector employment statistics for the fourth quarter of 2016   The Statistician-General of South Africa, Dr Pali Lehohla, will release the Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) for the fourth quarter of 2016 in Pretoria. The QES measures changes in employment across all industries in the formal   read more »

A fall in mining and manufacturing production in the final quarter of 2016 pulled South African economic growth into negative territory, according to preliminary figures of gross domestic product (GDP) released by Stats SA. South Africa’s economy contracted by 0,3% quarter-on-quarter (seasonally adjusted and annualised). The mining industry’s 11,5%1 drop in production was the main   read more »

The South African formal business sector generated R2,17 trillion in turnover in the third quarter of 2016. To put this into perspective, imagine if you drew this amount in R200 bills and went about giving away a bill every second. It would take 344 years to get rid of all the bills in this way!   read more »

Come join us as we tell a story of South African business performance over time. There are three elements to this story, taken from Stats SA’s latest Annual financial statistics (AFS) report1: income, expenditure and profit. First, let’s explore income. The income generated by the formal business2 sector has increased consistently, except for the dip   read more »

MEDIA ADVISORY                                                                                  08 December 2016 Statistician-General to release formal sector employment statistics for the third quarter of 2016 The Statistician-General of South Africa, Dr Pali Lehohla, will release the Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) for the third quarter of 2016. The QES measures changes in employment across all industries in the formal sector of the economy.   read more »