SA economy posts fourth straight quarter of expansion

South Africa’s economy expanded for a fourth straight quarter, extending the longest growth streak since 2021, when the nation was recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Gross domestic product increased 0.5% in the three months through September, compared with revised growth of 0.9% in the prior quarter, Statistics South Africa said in a report released in the capital, Pretoria, on Tuesday.

That matched the median estimate of 11 economists in a Bloomberg survey.

Growth in the quarter was largely led by the mining and agriculture sectors, which expanded 2.3% and 1.1%, respectively. Every other industry expanded barring electricity, gas and water, which shrank 2.5%.

“Growth was very widely spread across the economy,” Joe de Beer, acting secretary general for the statistics agency, said at a briefing.

Gross fixed capital formation reversed its decline, rising 1.6% in the quarter. That signals businesses are beginning to invest in machinery, buildings and other fixed