Star 2025-05-07

South Africa's private sector has emerged from a difficult downturn, recording a slight uptick in sales that has reignited activity and employment. The S&P Global South Africa Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) released on Tuesday reported a rise to 50.0 in April—a neutral mark that separates growth from contraction—marking a notable increase from last month’s figure of 48.3. This signals a shift after four consecutive months spent in negative territory. Key to this recovery has been the much-anticipated improvement in sales, resulting in increased new orders, output, and employment figures. David Owen, senior economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said the PMI print in April was better news for South African businesses as the second quarter began. Owen said that a sustained decline in operating conditions across the first quarter suggested…

Ministry is pushing for the sale of components of Amsa business to identified buyers The Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic), Parks Tau, said on Tuesday that the government was pushing for the sale of components of Arcelormittal South Africa (Amsa) business to identified buyers following a substantial R1.2 billion bailout from the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC). Answering an onslaught of questions from members of the portfolio committee on trade and industry in Parliament, Tau explained the scenario facing the automotive sector, which has expressed concerns over Amsa's troubles. Tau said the automotive sector had individually and through the Automotive Business Council (Naamsa) indicated that with Amsa doing defunct, the industry would have to follow suit as importing long steel would not be viable. "We can't as a…

The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) has expressed confidence in its decision to grant trading licences to private electricity operators, despite Eskom’s legal challenge. Eskom contends that Nersa violated its own regulations by issuing these licences without the proper industry rules, potentially jeopardising the integrity of the electricity supply chain. At the core of the dispute is Eskom’s frustration over licensing that permits private operators to trade electricity, diverging from the traditional path of virtual wheeling agreements. The challenge suggests a fear that these new entrants might cherry-pick the best-paying customers, leaving Eskom burdened with slower-paying clients. Nersa chairperson Thembani Bukula on Tuesday said the dispute Eskom had with the traders revolved around certain areas that traders will take the best paying customers and leave the utility with…

Moody’s Ratings agency has lowered South Africa’s growth forecast for 2025 on the back of expected slow global growth, driven by tariff uncertainty and trade tensions. The ratings agency on Tuesday said South Africa’s gross domestic product (GDP) for 2025 will only grow by 1.5%, a 0.2 percentage points decrease from its previous forecast. This growth forecast is in line with the 1.7% estimate from the SA Reserve Bank partly to subdued demand, and partly to lingering supply-side fragilities, but more optimistic than the downwardly revised 0.8% forecast by the International Monetary Fund last week. In its Global Macro Outlook 2025-26 Update, Moody’s said global growth slowdown was underway as policy uncertainty added risks to the global economy. “Policy uncertainty weighs on a global economy that was already slowing. Uncertainty…

Industry players are urging the South African government to prioritize policies to curb illicit trade through the crafting of an anti-illicit trade strategy, strengthening border controls and utilising technology in securing supply chains. This follows the release of the Transnational Alliance to Combat Illicit Trade (TRACIT) report reviewing South Africa’s fight against illicit trade this week. The report, released in conjunction with Business Unity South Africa (Busa), highlights how South Africa’s economy continues to be threatened by illegal trade, specifically in sectors such as alcohol, tobacco, food items, pharmaceuticals, agri-chemicals, counterfeiting, mining, and wildlife trafficking. It notes that illicit trade in tobacco and alcohol alone was costing South Africa as much as R30 billion a year in lost revenue. “Illicit trade deprives the government of critical revenue, fuels organised crime,…

The Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa (Agbiz) has raised its alarm over the alarming decline of sorghum farming, a crop that once held promise for various applications including cereals and biofuels. Wandile Sihlobo, chief economist of the Agbiz, on Tuesday highlighted the paradox facing the sorghum industry: despite its nutritional benefits and the potential for biofuel production, consumer demand remains dismally low, stunting growth and profitability. “Despite all these benefits, the sorghum industry has not taken off. The challenge is not that farmers refuse to plant it. This is due to its weak demand—consumers are not buying sorghum products like other staple grains,” Sihlobo said. “The issue of weak demand partly gave farmers hope that using sorghum in biofuels would provide a much-needed market for farmers. But this venture…