The JSE gave back some of its early morning gains at midday on Tuesday after US markets hit new highs and Asian trading was upbeat. SA’s GDP growth was at 0.2% in the third quarter, down from growth of 3.3% in the second quarter, Statistics SA said on Tuesday. The growth figure did surprise some economists who had forecast negative growth for the quarter, although it was below the 0.3%-0.6% range expected by local markets. The data showed that mining, finance, real estate and government and business services were the major contributors to SA’s GDP in the third quarter. Mining grew 5.1% in the quarter, while manufacturing contracted 3.2%. Agriculture was down for a seventh consecutive quarter. Nedbank economist Nicky Weimar said the economy was expected to fare only slightly better in the final quarter of the year, producing a GDP growth rate of about 0.4% in 2016 as a whole. "The outlook for 2017 remains uncertain, with more positive contributions expected from agriculture, mining a...
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