Economists warn SA's unemployment likely to soar
Economists and ratings agencies warn about downgrades and slow economy with jobless rate rising to 30%
Historically high unemployment levels are set to skyrocket as the economy weakens, fuelling fears of another credit rating downgrade in November. Unemployment had stayed at 27.7% for the third consecutive quarter, Statistics SA said in its Quarterly Labour Force Survey on Tuesday. It is 0.6 of a percentage point higher than the same period in 2016. SA’s high unemployment rate has consistently been raised by credit ratings agencies as a major obstacle to the country’s economic growth prospects. "The statistics provide further evidence that general economic conditions in the country remain subdued and that the economy is struggling to create jobs," said Nedbank economist Johannes Khosa.
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