President Cyril Ramaphosa has hardly said anything that inspires confidence among South Africans in so far as the country’s economic prospects are concerned, and whenever there is some progress made there has to certainly be an elevated amount of hope.
In his newsletter which he releases every Monday, the president quite crucially shed some light on how the economic recovery process is going, revealing some greatly encouraging news which majority of South Africans would gladly receive.
The Covid-19 pandemic had seriously battered, shattered and absolutely tattooed the South African economy, with virtually every sector shedding jobs at an alarming rate. The multiple lockdown restrictions have had a negative impact on livelihoods of most people.
Meanwhile, Ramaphosa confirmed that the news confirmed by the South African Revenue Services (SARS) which stated that another record trade surplus was recorded in May, and the value is in the tune of R54.6 billion.
According to investopedia, a trade surplus is defined as an economic measure of a positive balance of trade, in which the country’s exports exceed the imports.
Ramaphosa indicated that the surplus was mainly due to the 1.5% in exports which the country recorded both in April and May. This came against the backdrop of some revived activity in the mining sector, as exports of mining products such as minerals and precious metals, as well as the agricultural output.
He furthermore added that this level of activity in the mining sector will have huge impact on job creation, as the sector contributes around 10% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 5% in employment.
What do you make of what the President has said?
