South African Economy Shrinks 0.2%

(RTTNews) - The South African economy logged a renewed contraction in the second quarter, data from Statistics South Africa showed on Tuesday.

In real terms, gross domestic product shrank 0.2 percent sequentially after a 0.4 percent increase in the fourth quarter. Economists had expected a decrease of 0.1 percent. Moreover, this was the downturn since the fourth quarter of 2024.

The expenditure breakdown showed that household final consumption expenditure increased 0.4 percent, and government consumption also rose 0.4 percent. Meanwhile, gross fixed capital formation declined 0.2 percent, and net exports contributed negatively by 1.1 percent.

On the production side, the trade industry was the largest negative contributor, decreasing by 1.9 percent, followed by the manufacturing industry with a contraction of 1.8 percent.

On a yearly basis, economic growth eased to 0.9 percent from 1.9 percent in the first quarter.