23.06.202607:09:26UTC+00South Africa Business Cycle Index Falls for 1st Time in 7 Months

South Africa’s composite leading business cycle indicator fell by 1.8% month-on-month in April 2026, reversing a downwardly revised 1.5% increase in March. This was the first contraction since September of the previous year and was driven mainly by a slower six-month smoothed growth rate in the real M1 money supply and a decline in the number of approved residential building plans. Overall, 8 of the 10 component time series decreased, outweighing gains in domestic manufacturing orders and in the composite leading business cycle indicator for South Africa’s major trading partners. The composite coincident business cycle indicator was unchanged in March 2026, as an increase in the real value of wholesale, retail, and motor trade sales was offset in part by a decline in the industrial production index.