Economy shrinks by 0,6% in 3rd quarter
There was more bad news for the country’s economy as the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) recorded a negative growth in the third quarter.
Data released by Stats SA on Tuesday revealed that the economy shrunk by 0.6%.
Statistician General Risenga Maluleke said sectors that contributed to the negative growth included manufacturing, mining and quarrying.
“The mining and quarrying industry decreased by 6.1% and contributed -0.5 of a percentage points to GDP growth.
“The manufacturing industry decreased by 3.9% and contributed -0.5% of a percentage point to GDP growth,” he said.
Transport, storage and communication have also had a significant impact on the negative growth.
The sector recorded a decrease of 5.4%.
This is the second negative growth recorded in the country in 2019.
In Q1 of 2019, the economy shrunk by 3.2% but later recovered in Q2, when it grew by 3.1%.