Africa-Press – Eswatini. In the first quarter of 2023, a slower growth was noted in the ‘manufacture of beverages’, ‘manufacture of textiles’ and ‘processing and preserving of fruits and vegetables’ subsectors, all of which are export oriented.
According to the recent economic developments June/July 2023 issued by the Central Bank of Eswatini (CBE), the secondary sector remained suppressed, declining by a steeper 10.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2023, from a revised contraction of 0.4 per cent in the previous quarter.
Performance
It was reported that the persistent poor performance of the sector partially emanated from the ‘manufacturing’ subsector, which contracted by 12.1 per cent, year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023, from a revised decline of 1.4 per cent in the last quarter of 2022. Moreover, the ‘water and sewerage’ subsector declined by 17.0 per cent in the quarter under review, from a 2.6 per cent growth in the previous quarter, owing to a slowdown in demand for treated water from domestic industries. The decrease in demand for treated water by commercial customers was driven by a reported closure of some businesses and lower consumption in January due to the festive shut down. On the other hand, within the secondary sector, there was positive performance in the ‘electricity supply’ and ‘construction’ subsectors. Electricity generation improved by 16.1 per cent while construction activities rose by a slower 2.7 per cent on a year-on-year basis in the quarter under review.
Meanwhile, the CBE reported that the primary sector grew by a slower 3.4 per cent, year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023, from a revised growth of 5.0 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2022. Positive performance was mainly observed in the ‘growing of crops’, ‘animal production’, and ‘mining and quarrying’ subsectors. The ‘growing of crops’ subsector grew by 9.3 per cent in the quarter under review, rebounding from a decline of 0.9 per cent, mainly benefitting from developments in sugarcane production.
Production
Similarly, the ‘animal production’ subsector grew by 2.4 per cent in the quarter under review, from 11.3 per cent in the previous quarter, owing to increases in both ‘home and commercial’ cattle slaughters. Furthermore, the ‘mining and quarrying’ subsector grew by 14.4 per cent largely attributable to a 19.8 per cent increase in coal production in the first quarter of 2023. This acceleration benefitted from resumption of the mining of crown land, following temporary stoppages experienced in the previous quarter. The tertiary sector, accounting for approximately 61 per cent of total industries, grew by a slower 8.6 per cent year-on-year, in the first quarter of 2023, from a revised growth of 11.2 per cent in the previous quarter. The observed growth largely benefitted from increased economic activity in the ‘wholesale and retail’, ‘accommodation and food services’, ‘information and communication’ and ‘financial and insurance services’ subsectors.
Activity
Activity from the ‘wholesale and retail trade’ subsector grew by a slower 4.1 per cent in the quarter under review, from 18.3 per cent in the previous quarter. Notably, the accommodation and food services’ subsector rose by 27.9 per cent in the first quarter of 2023, reflecting continued recovery of the subsector post-COVID-19. The increasing usage of digital platforms continues to contribute positively in the use of data services, thereby supporting strong growth in the ‘information and communication’ subsector. Other improvements were noted in the ‘financial and insurance services’ subsector which grew by 28.5 per cent in the quarter under review, mainly benefitting from increases in ‘insurance and pension funding’ activities.
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