Fancy a meal out, or would you rather save up for accommodation when on holiday? We take a peek into the spending habits of domestic and international visitors who criss-cross the South African landscape. Visitors1 spent just over half a million rand every minute during the course of 2017! That amounts to R277 billion for the   read more »

The South African economy grew by 1,4%1 in the fourth quarter of 2018, contributing to an overall growth rate of 0,8% for the entire year. The latest set of gross domestic product (GDP) figures released by Stats SA provides an overview of economic performance in 2018. South Africa found itself in economic recession in 2018,   read more »

Consumer inflation dropped to 4,0% in January 2019 from 4,5% in December 2018. This is the lowest annual rate since March 2018, when headline inflation came in at 3,8%. The actual index level is now lower than it was in October 2018, according to Stats SA’s latest Consumer Price Index release1. This means that, on average,   read more »

The Investing in African Mining Indaba, the world’s largest mining conference, ended a week ago in Cape Town. Investment promises made at the conference might have a positive impact on the future of the industry. Stats SA takes a look at how mining fared in 2018. Mining had a lacklustre year. Production fell by 1,6%   read more »

The most important month of the year for retail trade is December, when many consumers are on holiday and go Christmas shopping. But December 2018 was a tough month for retail in South Africa. The volume of sales fell by 1,4% year-on-year, which was the first negative annual growth rate since February 2017. The poor   read more »

South Africa’s unemployment rate decreased by 0,4 of a percentage point to 27,1% in the 4th quarter of 2018 compared to the 3rd quarter of 2018 according to the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey released by Statistics South Africa. The working-age population increased by 149 000 or 0,4% in the 4th quarter of 2018 compared   read more »

The manufacturing industry rebounded in 2018, recording its highest annual growth rate in five years. The food and beverages and automotive divisions were the major drivers behind the rise. However, manufacturers in communication equipment, electrical machinery and clothing failed to perform. Manufacturing production increased by 1,2% in 2018 compared with 2017, according to Stats SA’s   read more »

When Stats SA published data in 2018 showing that one in every 22 working South Africans are employed in the tourism sector, it also provided additional tables showing how the tourism workforce is structured. For the inquiring mind, these lesser-known tables on employment appear in the second half of the latest Tourism Satellite Account for   read more »

The Quarterly Employment Survey (QES) for the third quarter of 2018, shows a decrease of 16 000 jobs. Job losses occurred in the manufacturing (-7 000), construction (-5 000), mining  (-2 000), trade (-2 000), transport (-1 000), and community services (-1 000) industries. The manufacturing and construction industries accounted for about three-quarters of the decline in employment over the quarter. Whilst   read more »

Some good news in trying times. After two consecutive years of decline, South African businesses recorded a 49% increase in net profit before tax in financial 2017, according to Stats SA’s latest Annual financial statistics (AFS) survey. The mining industry was the largest contributor to this rise. The success of a business generally depends on   read more »