South Africa’s manufacturing production remained higher than what markets had earlier expected during the month of June, owing to higher production in petroleum, chemical products, rubber and plastic products.
Manufacturing production grew 4.5 percent year-over-year in June, faster than the 3.9 percent climb in May. It was also above the 3.1 percent gain expected by economists, data released by Statistics South Africa showed Thursday. The increase in June was mainly driven by the higher production of petroleum, chemical products, rubber and plastic products.
Further, on a monthly basis, manufacturing output advanced 0.7 percent in June, defying economists' forecast for a 1.0 percent drop. In May, production had risen 1.3 percent. Seasonally adjusted manufacturing production increased by 2 percent in the second quarter of 2016 compared with the first quarter of 2016.
The increase is attributable to higher production in petroleum, chemical products, rubber and plastic products contributing 3.4 percent, higher production in wood and wood products, paper, publishing and printing, contributing 0.6 of a percentage point and food and beverages which contributed 0.5 of a percentage point.
Further, motor vehicles, parts and accessories and other transport equipment contributed 0.5 of a percentage point, while food and beverages rose 0.5 of a percentage point). Meanwhile, Nedbank economists expected the annual rate of manufacturing output is forecasted to have moderated to 3.1 percent from 4.1 percent in May.
