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 increased by 2.5 percent compared to January and was up 20.3 percent compared to February 2016.
Meanwhile, in January this year the PPI for exported basic iron and steel in South Africa increased by 4.7 percent compared to December and was down by 1.6 percent compared to the same month of 2016, while the index for exported products of iron and steel increased by 2.4 percent month on month and was up 25.6 percent year on year. In addition, in South Africa the PPI for imported basic metals in January this year increased by 6.1 percent month on month and was down 0.6 percent year on year.