SA dominates consumer spending for Southern Africa – report

Consumer spending in the Southern Africa region is dominated by South Africa, according to an NKC African Economics report. Picture: Karen Sandison/African News Agency(ANA)

Consumer spending in the Southern Africa region is dominated by South Africa, according to an NKC African Economics report. Picture: Karen Sandison/African News Agency(ANA)

Published Apr 7, 2021

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JOHANNESBURG – Consumer spending in Southern Africa is dominated by the region’s economic anchor, according to an NKC African Economics report.

The report is titled Research Briefing: Africa – Mapping the continent’s consumer spending landscape.

According to the report, South Africa holds four of the five biggest consumer markets in Southern Africa, with Johannesburg, in particular, dwarfing other cities in the region.

Total consumer spending in Johannesburg came in at an estimated $48 billion last year (about R698bn), followed by Cape Town ($20.3bn) and Tshwane ($17.4bn).

The only city outside of South Africa to make the top five is the capital of Angola, Luanda, with spending estimated at $13.3bn last year.

Southern Africa’s largest consumer markets are expected to show relatively weak growth over the next decade. Mozambican cities Beira (11.0 percent a year) and Maputo (10.1 percent), and Botswana’s capital Gaborone (10.4 percent) expected to see the strongest growth.

Luanda should also see robust growth in consumer spending, projected at about 9.3 percent a year over the 2020-30 period.

The per capita consumption profile of the region looks very different, with the Mauritian capital, Port Louis, estimated to have the continent’s highest per capita spending figure of $8 810 last year.

From a regional perspective, Port Louis is followed by Gaborone ($5 900) and the Namibian capital Windhoek ($4 980).

BUSINESS REPORT ONLINE

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