According to the latest data released by Statistics South Africa, in February this year the country's producer price index (PPI) for the basic iron and steel industry decreased by 0.1 percent compared to January and was up 7.6 percent compared to February 2018.
Meanwhile, in January this year the PPI for exported basic iron and steel in South Africa fell by 4.6 percent compared to December and was up by 11.2 percent compared to the same month of 2018, while the index for exported products of iron and steel decreased by 5.1 percent month on month and increased by 1.3 percent year on year. In addition, in South Africa the PPI for imported basic metals in January this year increased by 0.7 percent month on month and was up by 23.1 percent year on year.