THE South African Reserve Bank (SARB) did not expect the economy to shrink in the second quarter as it did in the first, said Reuters citing comments by Lesetja Kganyago, governor of the SARB.
Declines in mining and agriculture activity resulted in a 2.2% contraction in the first quarter, down from growth of 3.1% in the fourth quarter of 2017.
“At this stage, the high-frequency data for the second quarter indicate that a modest improvement is likely in the quarter, and the South African Reserve Bank does not expect a second consecutive quarter of contraction,” said Kganyago at the bank’s annual general meeting.
However, he did not think the pace of current growth was enough to make serious improvements in employment in South Africa. “At these growth levels, we cannot expect to make appreciable inroads into the unemployment problem of the country,” Kganyago said.
