Speaking to journalists at Parliament, Davies said that during the 2008/09 recession, the biggest casualty had been the South African manufacturing sector, who lost 200,000 jobs. "[W]ave two," or the resurgence of the global financial crisis, including the Euro debt issue and the impact this had on the world economy, is affecting our economy as well, Davies said. "In July this year, our manufacturing sector... saw a downturn... of minus six percent," he said. "Nearly 60,000 jobs lost... what's happening is that the environment is having a negative impact and we're a little bit volatile."
Certain designations, in terms of which state departments must purchase certain products from local manufacturers, would come into force on December 7 this year, said Davies. The designations cover seven sectors, including buses, railway rolling stock, power pylons, TV set-top boxes, certain pharmaceutical products, and food products such as canned vegetables. Other possible designations, said Davies, include electric cables, yellow metals, office furniture and school furniture.
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