By Schalk Burger.
Manufacturing production decreased by 1.4% year-on-year in December Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) Industry Statistics director Nicolai Claassen has reported.
The largest negative contributions were made by the food and beverages; wood and wood products, paper, publishing and printing; and basic iron and steel, nonferrous metal products, metal products and machinery sectors.
Further, manufacturing production decreased by 1.2% in December 2025 compared with November 2025. This followed month-on-month changes of 2.1% in November and 1.1% in October, StatsSA says.
Additionally, manufacturing production decreased by 0.5% in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared with the preceding quarter. Eight of the ten manufacturing divisions reported negative growth rates over this period.
For the fourth quarter, motor vehicles, parts and accessories and other transport equipment; wood and wood products, paper, publishing and printing; and food and beverages reported the largest negative contributions.
Meanwhile, manufacturing sales decreased by 4.5% in December compared with November. This followed month-on-month decreases of 0.7% in November and 0.9% in October.
In the fourth quarter of 2025, manufacturing sales decreased by 2.5% compared with the third quarter.