Ahead of Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan’s Budget Speech later Wednesday, the South African government has revealed that the country’s economy posted a moderate growth of 2.5% in 2012, down from 3.5% in 2011.
Also, gross domestic product (GDP) growth went from 1.2% in the third quarter to a stronger than expected 2.1% in the fourth quarter.
The main contributors to the quarter-on-quarter increase were manufacturing (0.8%), finance, real estate and business services (0.6%) and general government services (0.4%).
Statistics South Africa said the growth in manufacturing was led by strong growth in the production of petroleum and basic iron and steel, while the growth in finance, real estate and business services was due to increased activity at the country’s commercial banks.
Meanwhile, the South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) has said Gordhan’s Budget speech should send a signal to the world that South Africa is a stable and growing economy, while also giving information on how the country’s infrastructure projects will be funded.
