Mining production in South Africa shrank 1.5 percent from a year earlier in May 2019, the seventh consecutive month of decline and compared to market forecasts of a 2.5 percent slump. The largest negative contributors were: gold (-24.4 percent), diamonds (-30.7 percent), iron ore (-5.2 percent), and other metallic minerals (-9.8 percent). On the other hand, output growth was recorded for coal (8 percent), PGMs (6.8 percent), and manganese ore (29.3 percent). On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, mining output increased by 3 percent, reversing a 1.8 percent fall in April. Mining Production in South Africa averaged -0.10 percent from 1981 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 23.20 percent in October of 2013 and a record low of -17.40 percent in March of 2016.
Mining Production in South Africa is expected to be -1.60 percent by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. Looking forward, we estimate Mining Production in South Africa to stand at 1.30 in 12 months time. In the long-term, the South Africa Mining Production is projected to trend around 1.40 percent in 2020, according to our econometric models.