South Africa’s economy grew for a second consecutive year as its gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 2 percent to reach 4.6 trillion rand (about 249 billion U.S. dollars), official data showed Tuesday.
In the fourth quarter of 2022, the country’s GDP saw a 1.3 percent decline, according to data released by Statistic South Africa.
Growth in the fourth quarter was dragged lower mainly by finance, trade, mining, agriculture, manufacturing and general government services, the department said.
As the finance, real estate and business services industries are the largest in the South African economy, the 2.3-percent decrease was the biggest factor behind the decline in GDP, according to the department.
Trade, catering, and lodging were the second-largest negative contributors to the growth drop, which recorded a contraction of 2.1 percent.
On the positive side, transport, storage and communication, construction and personal services were the bright spots in the fourth quarter as transport, storage and communication sector rose by 0.7 percent, mainly due to increased economic activity in passenger land transport, air transport and communication services, the department said. Enditem
