Manufacturing production in South Africa decreased by 3.5% year-on-year in June, primarily brought down by the motor vehicles, parts and accessories, and other transport equipment sector, which declined by 17% and subtracted 1.8 percentage points from the overall tally.

The food and beverages sector’s 3.8% decline contributed to 0.8 of a percentage point being shaved off the overall figure, while a 2.9% decline in the manufacturing of basic iron and steel, nonferrous metal products, metal products and machinery took 0.6 of a percentage point off overall.

Compared with May, seasonally adjusted manufacturing production decreased by 1.5% in June, following month-on-month changes of 0.2% in May and -5.4% in April.

Compared with the first quarter of the year, seasonally adjusted manufacturing production slipped 5.5% in the second quarter, with eight of the ten manufacturing divisions reporting negative growth rates over this period.

The largest contributors to the decline in manufacturing production in the second quarter were the petroleum, chemical products, rubber and plastic products sectors, which declined 6.4%, taking 1.4 percentage points from the overall tally.

A 5.6% decline in the food and beverages sector took 1.3 percentage points overall; while an 11.2% decline in the sectors of motor vehicles, parts and accessories and other transport equipment subtracted 1.1 percentage points.

Compared with May, seasonally adjusted manufacturing sales decreased by 0.2% in June, following month-on-month changes of 3% in May and -3.5% in April.

Compared with the first quarter of the year, seasonally adjusted manufacturing sales increased by 0.5% in the second quarter, largely owing to a 6.7% increase in sales of petroleum, chemical products, rubber and plastic products, which served to buoy the overall tally by 1.2 percentage points.

A 2.6% increase in sales in the food and beverages sector in June served to add 0.6 of a percentage point to the overall figure.