The unemployment rate in South Africa rose to 27.6 percent in the first quarter of 2019 from 27.1 percent in the previous period. It is the highest jobless rate since Q3 2017, as the number of unemployed went up by 62 thousand to 6.20 million and employment fell by 237 thousand to 16.29 million. The unemployment rate usually rises in the first quarter of the year, as temporary staff hired to work over the busy festive season is dismissed. However, a year earlier, the jobless rate was lower at 26.7 percent. Unemployment Rate in South Africa averaged 25.66 percent from 2000 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 31.20 percent in the first quarter of 2003 and a record low of 21.50 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008.

Unemployment Rate in South Africa is expected to be 27.80 percent by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. Looking forward, we estimate Unemployment Rate in South Africa to stand at 28.30 in 12 months time. In the long-term, the South Africa Unemployment Rate is projected to trend around 28.40 percent in 2020, according to our econometric models.

South Africa Unemployment Rate
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Calendar GMT Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2018-07-31 09:30 AM Unemployment Rate 27.2% 26.7% 26.7%
2018-10-30 09:30 AM Unemployment Rate 27.5% 27.2% 27.4%
2019-02-12 09:30 AM Unemployment Rate 27.1% 27.5% 27.40%
2019-05-14 09:30 AM Unemployment Rate 27.6% 27.1% 27.60%
2019-07-30 09:30 AM Unemployment Rate 27.6% 27.80%
2019-10-29 09:30 AM Unemployment Rate 28.00%



South Africa Jobless Rate at 1-1/2-Year High of 27.6%

The unemployment rate in South Africa rose to 27.6 percent in the first quarter of 2019 from 27.1 percent in the previous period. It is the highest jobless rate since Q3 2017, as the number of unemployed went up by 62 thousand to 6.20 million and employment fell by 237 thousand to 16.29 million. The unemployment rate usually rises in the first quarter of the year, as temporary staff hired to work over the busy festive season is dismissed. However, a year earlier, the jobless rate was lower at 26.7 percent.

The number of unemployed increased by 62 thousand to 6.20 million from 6.14 million in the fourth quarter of 2018. Employment declined by 237 thousand to 16.29 million from 16.53 million in the previous period. Job shedding was registered in the formal sector (-126 thousand), informal sector (-68 thousand), private households (-31 thousand), construction (-142 thousand), agriculture (-12 thousand), mining (-20 thousand), finance (-94 thousand) and community and social services (-50 thousand). In contrast, gains were observed in manufacturing (+14 thousand), utilities (+16 thousand), trade (+25 thousand) and transport (+59 thousand)

The labour force also went down by 176 thousand to 22.49 million from 22.67 million in the preceding quarter and those detached from it rose by 325 thousand to 15.79 million from 15.47 million in Q4.

The expanded definition of unemployment, including people who have stopped looking for work, rose to 38 percent in the first quarter of 2019 from 37 percent in the fourth quarter of 2018.

By genders, the jobless rate dropped for women (29.3 percent vs 29.5 percent in Q4) but it increased for men (26.1 percent vs 25.1 percent). Also, the youth unemployment rate continued to climb to 55.2 percent from 54.7 percent in Q4, putting the rate at the highest level since Q2 2017.

In terms of breakdown by population, African black persons (31.1 percent vs 30.4 percent) and Coloured (22.2 percent vs 21.6 percent) were more affected by unemployment than White (6.6 percent vs 7.6 percent) or Indian/Asian (11.4 percent vs 12.4 percent).


Statistics South Africa | Luisa Carvalho | luisa.carvalho@tradingeconomics.com
5/14/2019 11:13:19 AM


News

South Africa Jobless Rate Drops to 27.1% in Q4
The unemployment rate in South Africa decreased to 27.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2018 from 27.5 percent in the previous period. The unemployment rate usually falls in the last quarter of the year, due to higher job activity during the festive season. However, a year earlier, the jobless rate was lower at 26.7 percent.
Published on 2019-02-12

South Africa Jobless Rate Highest in a Year
The unemployment rate in South Africa rose to 27.5 percent in the third quarter of 2018 from 27.2 percent in the previous period. It was the highest jobless rate since the third quarter of 2017, as the number of unemployed increased by 127 thousand to 6.21 million. Meantime, the number of employed advanced by 92 thousand to 16.38 million.
Published on 2018-10-30

South Africa Jobless Rate Rises to 27.2% in Q2
The unemployment rate in South Africa increased to 27.2 percent in the second quarter of 2018 from 26.7 percent in the previous period. The number of unemployed rose by 103 thousand to 6.08 million while the number of employed fell by 90 thousand to 16.29 million.
Published on 2018-07-31

South Africa Jobless Rate Steady at 26.7% in Q1
South Africa's unemployment rate came in at 26.7 percent in the first quarter of 2018, unchanged from the previous period. The number of unemployed increased by 100 thousand to 5.98 million and the number of employed rose by 207 thousand to 16.38 million.
Published on 2018-05-15



South Africa Labour Last Previous Highest Lowest Unit
Unemployment Rate 27.60 27.10 31.20 21.50 percent [+]
Employed Persons 10151000.00 9733000.00 10151000.00 3694977.00 [+]
Unemployed Persons 6200.00 6100.00 6214.11 3873.00 Thousand [+]
Labor Force Participation Rate 58.80 59.40 60.80 53.60 percent [+]
Labour Costs 154.00 150.90 154.00 1.10 Index Points [+]
Wages 21190.00 20860.00 21190.00 6742.00 ZAR/Month [+]
Wages in Manufacturing 18510.00 18344.00 18510.00 6250.00 ZAR/Month [+]
Population 57.73 56.84 57.73 17.46 Million [+]
Retirement Age Women 60.00 60.00 60.00 60.00 [+]
Retirement Age Men 60.00 60.00 65.00 60.00 [+]
Wages Low Skilled 4380.00 3960.00 4380.00 3840.00 ZAR/Month [+]
Youth Unemployment Rate 55.20 54.70 55.90 48.80 percent [+]
Wages High Skilled 22600.00 20300.00 22600.00 19000.00 ZAR/Month [+]
Living Wage Family 11300.00 10700.00 11300.00 10700.00 ZAR/Month [+]
Living Wage Individual 6570.00 6140.00 6570.00 6140.00 ZAR/Month [+]
Employment Rate 42.56 43.34 46.17 41.00 percent [+]


South Africa Unemployment Rate

In South Africa, the unemployment rate measures the number of people actively looking for a job as a percentage of the labour force. This page provides - South Africa Unemployment Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. South Africa Unemployment Rate - actual data, historical chart and calendar of releases - was last updated on May of 2019.

Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
27.60 27.10 31.20 21.50 2000 - 2019 percent Quarterly
SA




Country Last Previous
South Africa 27.60 Mar/19
Spain 14.70 Mar/19
Turkey 14.70 Feb/19
Brazil 12.70 Mar/19
Italy 10.20 Mar/19
Argentina 9.10 Dec/18
France 8.70 Mar/19
Euro Area 7.70 Mar/19
Saudi Arabia 6.00 Dec/18
Canada 5.70 Apr/19
Australia 5.20 Apr/19
Indonesia 5.01 Mar/19
Russia 4.70 Apr/19
South Korea 4.10 Apr/19
United Kingdom 3.80 Mar/19
China 3.67 Mar/19
United States 3.60 Apr/19
India 3.53 Dec/18
Netherlands 3.30 Apr/19
Germany 3.20 Mar/19
Mexico 3.20 Mar/19
Japan 2.50 Mar/19
Switzerland 2.40 Apr/19
Singapore 2.20 Mar/19


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