In a cautionary note‚ Stats SA said the Easter weekend fell partly in March and partly in April this year‚ whereas it fell in April last year and this may have positively affected the performance of manufacturing in April this year. It says this should be taken into account in assessing the increase of 7.0% year-on-year in April.
"There were 18 working days in April 2012 compared with 21 working days in April 2013‚" Stats SA said.
The 7.0% year-on-year increase in manufacturing production in April was mainly due to higher production in the divisions of motor vehicles‚ parts and accessories and 'other' transport equipment (18.0% and contributing 1.9 percentage points); basic iron and steel‚ non-ferrous metal products‚ metal products and machinery (9.2% and contributing 1.9 percentage points); and petroleum‚ chemical products‚ rubber and plastic products (7.2% and contributing 1.9 percentage points).
The seasonally adjusted index increased by 8.4% between March and April‚ but Stats SA said if the "Easter effect" were to be split between March and April 2013‚ the month-on-month seasonally adjusted outcome for April would reflect a weaker performance.
The seasonally adjusted manufacturing production for the three months ended April this year fell by 1.9% compared with the previous three months. Five of the ten manufacturing divisions reported negative growth rates over this period.
The largest negative contributions to the decrease of 1.9% were made by the divisions of petroleum‚ chemical products‚ rubber and plastic products (-6.2% and contributing -1.6 percentage points); wood and wood products‚ paper‚ publishing and printing (-5.3% and contributing -0.5 of a percentage point); and furniture and 'other' manufacturing (-3.7% and contributing -0.2 of a percentage point).
Seasonally adjusted sales of manufactured products (at current prices) for the three months ended April 2013 increased by 0.7% compared with the previous three months.
Seven of the ten manufacturing divisions reported positive growth rates over this period.
The manufacturing divisions that were mainly responsible for the increase in total manufacturing sales were basic iron and steel‚ non-ferrous metal products‚ metal products and machinery (3.0%) and motor vehicles‚ parts and accessories and 'other' transport equipment (5.3%).
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