![SA’s tourism trade balance edges lower](https://www.statssa.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/tourism-64x64.jpg)
SA’s tourism trade balance edges lower
South Africa enjoys a positive tourism trade balance with the rest of the world. What this means is that non-resident visitors spend more money in our country than South African travellers spend abroad. However, the trade balance surplus has narrowed since 2016. In 2018, non-resident visitors1 (which includes both tourists and same-day visitors) spent a read more »
![Working capital: how do South African businesses fare?](https://www.statssa.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/work10-64x64.png)
Working capital: how do South African businesses fare?
Stats SA provides a snapshot of working capital across the formal business sector in the latest release of the Annual Financial Statistics (AFS) report. Working capital is a measure of a company’s liquidity and is one of a number of measures that provide insight into a company’s ability to pay off debt. To calculate working read more »
![Government spending climbs to R1,71 trillion](https://www.statssa.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/gov2-64x64.jpg)
Government spending climbs to R1,71 trillion
The South African government spent 7,3% more in 2017/18 than it did in 2016/17. The rise was largely driven by general public services, education and health. This pushed total government spending up to R1,71Â trillion1 in 2017/18, R116Â billion more than the R1,59Â trillion spent in 2016/17. This is according to the latest Financial statistics of consolidated general read more »
![Public-sector capital expenditure continues to fall](https://www.statssa.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/data2-64x64.jpg)
Public-sector capital expenditure continues to fall
Public-sector investment in the nation’s infrastructure slowed for a second consecutive year, falling by 8,2% in 2018. This followed a 4,0% decline in 2017. These decreases have seen public-sector capital expenditure slip to a level last seen in 2014. Capital expenditure is money that institutions spend to buy, maintain or upgrade fixed assets such as read more »
Mbalo Brief – September 2019
Citizens around the world celebrated International Literacy Day on 8 September 2019. This day, which was established by the United Nations (UN) in 1966, has been celebrated annually with the key aim to highlight improvements in literacy and numeracy rates while also providing a chance to reflect on the world’s literacy challenges. The UN has dubbed read more »
Stats Biz – August 2019
After shrinking sharply in the first quarter of 2019, the economy rebounded from a low base to record positive growth of 3,1% in the second quarter. Mining, finance, trade and government services were the main drivers of growth. Explore the latest GDP figures, as well as other stories, in this edition of Stats Biz. Download read more »
SOUTH AFRICA’s FIRST NATURAL CAPITAL ACCOUNTING FORUM
PRESS RELEASE:                              09 July 2019 SOUTH AFRICA’s FIRST NATURAL CAPITAL ACCOUNTING FORUM South Africa’s first-ever national Natural Capital Accounting Forum will take place in Pretoria at Statistics South Africa’s Head Office, ISIbalo House, on 10-11 July 2019. The Forum is hosted by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) in partnership with the South African National read more »
![A breakdown of the tax pie](https://www.statssa.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/pie4-64x64.jpg)
A breakdown of the tax pie
Note: The original version of this article was published on 25 June 2019, with the international tax-to-GDP ratio figures based on data from the IMF. After discussions with National Treasury, it was agreed that tax-to-GDP figures from the OECD provide a more relevant picture when South Africa is compared with other countries, as the IMF read more »
Stats Biz – May 2019
The South African economy slumped sharply in the first three months of 2019, contracting by 3,2%. This is according to Stats SA’s latest gross domestic product (GDP) release. Seven of the ten industries took a knock, with manufacturing, mining and trade the biggest contributors to the fall. The 3,2% decline is the biggest quarterly fall read more »
![Economy stumbles in the first quarter](https://www.statssa.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/dt1-64x64.jpg)
Economy stumbles in the first quarter
The South African economy slumped sharply in the first three months of 2019, contracting by 3,2%.1 Seven of the ten industries took a knock, with manufacturing, mining and trade the biggest contributors to the fall. Construction, mining and trade are in recession. The 3,2% decline is the biggest quarterly fall in economic activity since the read more »