Absa PMI rises in April as blackout fears ease
South Africa's seasonally adjusted Absa Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose in April, breaking a run of three consecutive months of decline as business activity and new sales orders increased, a survey showed on Thursday.
The index, which gauges manufacturing activity in Africa's most industrialised economy, rose to 47.2 points from 45 points in March, its highest in four months but still below the 50 mark separating contraction from expansion.
"The PMI remains below the neutral 50-point mark and is more or less in line with the average recorded in the first quarter of 2019. This means that factory conditions stabilised at a fairly depressed level at the start of the second quarter," Absa said in a statement.
The survey showed two of the sub indices increasing while the other three fell, a reflection of lingering concerns after country-wide power cuts in February and March and relief of stable power supply in April.
The lack of load shedding during the month may have supported the slight improvement in sentiment, Absa said.
South Africa suffered deep power cuts earlier this year, as ailing utility Eskom struggled with capacity constraints. Eskom has not implemented rolling blackouts since March 23, but has warned the power system remains vulnerable.
Last month government had to bring forward a bailout for the state firm, rushing R5-billion to the utility to avert a default.
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