JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South African manufacturing activity slumped in May, a Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) survey showed on Monday, with respondents citing uncertainty linked to last week’s election and sluggish demand.
Wednesday’s vote saw the African National Congress lose its outright majority for the first time in 30 years, meaning it must now share power for the first time in the country’s post-apartheid history.
The seasonally-adjusted PMI for the factory sector dropped to 43.8 points in May from 54.0 in April, falling below the 50-point mark that separates expansion from contraction.
“Numerous respondents said that orders were put on hold as clients waited for the election results,” local bank Absa, which sponsors the survey, said in a statement.
“The PMI has been in contractionary territory for three out of five months this year, as the manufacturing sector seems volatile in an election year.”
(Reporting by Alexander Winning; Editing by Bate Felix)
