Q3 GDP declines more than expected – agriculture surprises on the down-side
[{“type”:”text”,”content”:”While the agricultural sector did come in surprisingly low, this could possibly be a blip as all other indicators point to a buoyant sector. The current agricultural GDP outcome could be attributed to factors which include lower harvesting activity in the third quarter. Relative to Q3 in 2020, the rand is significantly firmer and that could have impacted on export returns. However, the mainstay of 2021 Q3 data is the July unrest events in KZN and Gauteng. The disruprions impacted on supply and this had a bearing on timing of exports to markets for commodities like citrus.nnNonetheless, the general outlook for the sector still remains upbeat and we expect the full year outcome to be positive, despite some Covid-19 related challenges still remaining. nnMore information available here:nn* *http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0441/GDP%202021%20Q3%20Media%20presentation.pdf*n* *http://www.statssa.gov.za/?page_id=1856&PPN=P0441&SCH=72933 (key findings)*n* *http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0441/P04413rdQuarter2021.pdf (entire document)*”,”position”:0,”id”:”i5HIqulTBvOUagj9″}]