SA November manufacturing production up 3.4%

Manufacturing production increased by 3.4% year on year (y/y) in November after an upwardly revised 2.7% (2.5%) year-on-year rise in October‚ data released by Statistics SA on Thursday, 10 January 2013, showed.

Seasonally adjusted manufacturing production increased by 0.8% in the three months ended November compared with the previous three months.

The 3.4% y/y increase in manufacturing production was mainly due to higher production in the petroleum‚ chemical products‚ rubber and plastic products (11.4% and contributing 2.6 percentage points); motor vehicles‚ parts and accessories and other transport equipment (6.7% and contributing 0.7 of a percentage point); furniture and "other" manufacturing groups (7.0% and contributing 0.3 of a percentage point).

Higher production in the radio‚ television and communication apparatus and professional equipment also contributed to the increase (13.8% and contributing 0.2 of a percentage point); textiles‚ clothing‚ leather and footwear (1.5% and contributing 0.1 of a percentage point); basic iron and steel‚ non-ferrous metal products‚ metal products and machinery (0.6% and contributing 0.1 of a percentage point); and the wood and wood products‚ paper‚ publishing and printing (0.6% and contributing 0.1 of a percentage point) also contributed.

For the 0.8% increase in the three months ended November‚ six of the ten manufacturing divisions reported positive growth rates.

The largest contributions were made by the petroleum‚ chemical products‚ rubber and plastic products (5.9% and contributing 1.4 of a percentage point); wood and wood products‚ paper‚ publishing and printing (5.4% and contributing 0.5 of a percentage point); basic iron and steel‚ non-ferrous metal products‚ metal products and machinery (2.5% and contributing 0.5 of a percentage point); and the radio‚ television and communication apparatus and professional equipment (6.8% and contributing 0.1 of a percentage point).

The seasonally adjusted sales of manufactured products (at current prices) increased by 2.0% (R7.5bn) in the three months ended November compared with the previous three months.

Seven of the ten manufacturing divisions reported positive growth rates over this period.