A DECLINE in production from mining during 2018 is expected to weigh heavily on South Africa’s economy, said BusinessLive citing data from Statistics SA.
Mining production decreased by a higher-than-expected 4.8% year-on-year in December, after a 5.6% contraction in November, said the publication.
The sector was hard hit by the continued strike at Sibanye-Stillwater and intermittent electricity from Eskom towards the end of 2018. Economists polled by macro-economics website Trading Economics expected a contraction of 0.6%, said BusinessLive.
For 2018 as a whole, mining production was 1.6% lower compared with 2017. Seasonally adjusted mining production decreased by 1% in the fourth quarter compared with the previous quarter.
