According to the preliminary data released by Statistics South Africa, in September this year the country's manufacturing output fell by 1.1 percent compared to the same month of 2011, while the seasonally adjusted manufacturing production is estimated to have decreased by 2.3 percent compared to August.
Seasonally adjusted manufacturing production in the third quarter of 2012 increased by 0.3 percent compared with the second quarter of 2012.
In South Africa, the seasonally adjusted production of basic iron and steel products in September increased by 9.5 percent compared to August, while the actual production index of basic iron and steel products saw an increase of 11.5 percent year on year. The country's basic iron and steel products in the third quarter of the year increased by 8.4 percent compared to the previous quarter.
However, for basic iron and steel products, the estimated seasonally adjusted sales of manufactured products (at current prices) in the third quarter this year decreased by six percent quarter on quarter, amounting to ZAR 22.7 billion ($2.6 billion).