South African Reserve Bank Quarterly Bulletin finds that labour productivity in the formal non-agricultural sector slowed further from 0.6% in the 1st quarter of 2023 to no growth in the 2nd quarter

Economic activity in South Africa decreased in the third quarter of 2023 as real gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by 0.2% following a revised expansion of 0.5% in the second quarter. This is according to the newly released Quartely Bulletin by the South African Reserve Bank which outlines the current state of the economy in terms of spending, impact of interest rates, inflation, growth and investment. The report also shows that growth in labour productivity in the formal non-agricultural sector slowed further from 0.6% in the first quarter of 2023 to no growth in the second quarter as year-on-year employment growth exceeded that in output. To unpack this, Sakina Kamwendo spoke to Iaan Venter, Head of Business Cycle Analysis Unit at the South African Reserve Bank