Not a single important first-world country is
currently growing faster than SA
THE COUNTRY'S gross domestic product (GDP) increased by 2.2% in 2001.
This compared poorly to the growth rate of 3.4% in 2000, but the figures reported by Statistics SA were more or less in line with what economists expected.
The main driving forces behind the increase were the finance, real estate and business services, manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade, hotels and restaurants and transport and communications industries.
The good news in this, according to the analysis by Standard Bank economist Henry Flint, was that the growth performance of the economy is above average.
"Not a single important first-world country is currently growing faster than SA," he said. "Also, having languished at the bottom of the emerging market group for some time in terms of growth, we are suddenly growing faster than such stars as Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and Mexico."
And the outlook for the year? A slower growth rate, according to Flint's forecast but promising for the likes of the freight industry.
"We still think the economy will battle to grow faster than 2.0%," he said, "and that growth will be driven by services industries.
"The global economy is just too weak to lead to higher growth rates in SA."
The GDP growth rate is also unlikely to move interest rates, according to Flint.
"The interest rate will depend crucially on expected inflation," he said, "which, in turn, depends on the oil price and the exchange rate."
