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 was up 4.8 percent compared to January and was up by 27.3 percent compared to February 2020.
Meanwhile, in January this year the PPI for exported basic iron and steel in South Africa rose by 7.1 percent compared to December and increased by 26.1 percent compared to the same month of 2020, while the index for exported products of iron and steel was up by 3.4 percent month on month and increased by 13.3 percent year on year. In addition, in South Africa the PPI for imported basic metals in January this year decreased by 1.1 percent month on month and was down by 5.4 percent year on year.