According to the latest data released by Statistics South Africa, in January this year the country's producer price index (PPI) for the basic iron and steel industry increased by 2.5 percent compared to December and was up 18.5 percent compared to January 2016.
Meanwhile, in December last year the PPI for exported basic iron and steel in South Africa increased by three percent compared to November and was up by 0.8 percent compared to the same month of 2015, while the index for exported products of iron and steel increased by 3.4 percent month on month and was up 24.5 percent year on year. In addition, in South Africa the PPI for imported basic metals in December last year increased by 0.6 percent month on month and was down 8.5 percent year on year.