Source: Bizcommunity, 4 May 2021, photo credit: GradAustralia
The automotive sector, mining and agriculture have taken a huge knock in the past year, but remain South Africa’s best chance for a change in fortunes given their track record and faith placed in them by international markets.
Benefactor industries like logistics and supply chains could help with rebuilding the domestic economy in the aftermath of Covid-19’s lockdown impact. Stats SA, for example, reports that in the three months ended February 2021, seasonally adjusted motor trade sales increased by 0,5% compared with the previous three months.
And while income from freight transportation decreased by 5.4% in the three months ended February 2021 compared with the same period in 2020, seasonally adjusted payload increased by 0.3% in the three months ended February.
Road freight also increased by 2.2% during this same period, according to Stats SA.
The trend is reflected in export figures, where the UVI (import value indices) for export commodities grew 0.6% from January to February. The main contributors to the monthly increase were metal products, machinery and equipment.
Since February, there have been some positive signs, however slight.
For these numbers to continue on an upward trajectory, the role of supply chain systems will become ever more critical, particularly when it comes to South Africa’s carmakers, the country’s largest manufacturing sector responsible for 6.9% of GDP and employing almost 500,000 workers.
With the stakes so high, dropping the ball is not an option.
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The South African Pork Producers’ Organisation (SAPPO) coordinates industry interventions and collaboratively manages risks in the value chain to enable the sustainability and profitability of pork producers in South Africa.
