INVESTMENTS by local manufacturers in the first half of 2016 dropped by the most in seven years as weak domestic demand, declining orders and pressure on selling prices eroded profits.The level of investment in the sector on machinery and capital equipment contracted 9.6% year on year, the biggest decline since 2009, Barclays Africa economist Miyelani Maluleke said.Although private-sector investment in SA was broadly weaker during the period, in line with dwindling economic growth, the manufacturing sector fared the worst. Manufacturing contributes 15% to GDP.Maluleke estimated that about 400,000 manufacturing jobs had been lost since 2008, based on data provided by Statistics SA’s quarterly labour force survey."The sector that is meant to be the key driver of employment in SA is bleeding jobs," he said.Newly released results of a survey by Absa and the Bureau of Economic Research show that only 30% of manufacturers are satisfied with prevailing business conditions. Lisette IJssel d...
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