South Africa’s economy is unlikely to go into recession, even after a 0.6 percent contraction in the first quarter, as data pointed to a rebound in the mining and manufacturing sectors, Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene said in a written response to parliamentary questions yesterday.
“At this point, signals are for growth in the second quarter to be slow but positive,” he said.
He said many of the brakes on growth, including protracted labour strikes and electricity constraints, were of a supply-side nature, therefore fiscal measures would not be sufficient to boost economic expansion. – Reuters