Economy South Africa
Economy - overview:
South Africa is a middle-income, emerging market with an abundant
supply of natural resources; well-developed financial, legal,
communications, energy, and transport sectors; a stock exchange that
ranks among the 10 largest in the world; and a modern infrastructure
supporting an efficient distribution of goods to major urban centers
throughout the region. However, growth has not been strong enough to
lower South Africa's high unemployment rate, and daunting economic
problems remain from the apartheid era - especially poverty and lack
of economic empowerment among the disadvantaged groups. South
African economic policy is fiscally conservative, but pragmatic,
focusing on targeting inflation and liberalizing trade as means to
increase job growth and household income.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$576.4 billion (2006 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$200.5 billion (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
4.5% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$13,000 (2006 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 2.6% industry: 30.3% services: 67.1% (2006 est.)
Labor force: 16.09 million economically active (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 30% industry: 25% services: 45% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate:
25.5% (2006 est.)