South Africa’s leading index dropped for the second consecutive month in March, survey figures from the South African Reserve Bank showed Tuesday.
The composite leading business cycle indicator decreased 0.2 percent month-over-month to 98.5 in March from 98.7 in February. The index reached the lowest since January 2010, when the score was 98.2.
On an annual basis, the measure declined 1.6 percent in March, compared to a 2.3 percent decrease in the previous month.
Among the ten components, five contributed negatively to the index, while five gained in March. The largest negative contribution to the index came from a decrease in the number of residential building plans passed and as a fall in the US dollar based export commodity price index.
At the same time, the biggest positive contribution came from an increase in the twelve-month percentage change in job advertisement space, followed by a widening in the interest rate spread.
Meanwhile, the coincident index increased 0.6 percent to 119.2 in February from 118.5 in the prior month. Also, the lagging index rose 0.8 percent to 105.7 in February from 104.9 in January.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company – www.instaforex.com