EasyData Macroeconomic Service
What’s included
This page provides a detailed description of the content available within the Macroeconomic Service.
a) Economic Data
The following data sets are included:
Agricultural Statistics (Department of Agriculture)
The agricultural statistics databank contains meaningful information on field crops, horticulture, livestock, capital allocation and information on agricultural imports and exports.
Number of time-series: 941
Source: Abstract of Agricultural Statistics by the National Department of Agriculture.
Update frequency: Annually
Bureau for Economic Research (BER)
The BER, a South African economic research institute part of the University of Stellenbosch, focuses on the South African macroeconomy and selected economic sectors.
Number of time-series: 1,402
Source: BER
Update frequency: Monthly
Fuel Prices
This database includes prices provided by SAPIA and Department of Energy (DE) for petroleum products including petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin.
Number of time-series: 23
Source: South African Petroleum Industry Association (SAPIA), Department of Energy (DE)
Update frequency: Monthly
House Price Index (Absa)
Monthly and Quarterly South African house price indices.
Number of time-series: 216
Source: ABSA bank
Update frequency: Monthly
House Price Index (FNB)
Monthly and Quarterly South African house price indices.
Number of timeseries: 41
Source: First National Bank (FNB)
Update frequency: Monthly
Mineral Statistics
Monthly statistics by commodity on unit price, volume and value for export and local sales. Gross production volumes are also provided. Employment by commodity is also provided.
Number of timeseries: 1,198
Source: Department of Mineral Resources (DMR)
Update frequency: Monthly
Mineral Statistics (Provincial)
Annual statistics by commodity and province of origin on volume and value for export and local sales. Gross production volumes are also provided. Employment by commodity is also provided.
Number of timeseries: 575
Source: Department of Mineral Resources (DMR)
Update frequency: Annually
SARS Preliminary Trade Statistics (SACU)
Preliminary monthly trade statistics from the Customs and Excise Division at the South African Revenue Service (SARS)
Number of timeseries: 118
Source: South African Revenue Service (SARS)
Update frequency: Monthly
SARB BA900
Part of the banking sector data made available by the SARB. The BA900 Forms are completed by each financial institution. The data includes monthly institutional and maturity breakdown of assets and liabilities, within 15 business days after the end of the reference month. This return is a detailed balance sheet and the main source of information for compiling the monetary and credit aggregates. The BA900 must be reconcilable with the balance sheet which banks and mutual banks submit for bank supervision purposes.
Number of timeseries: 14,937
Source: South African Reserve Bank (SARB)
Update frequency: Monthly
SARB BD900
Part of the banking sector data made available by the SARB. Banks historical DI900 converted to BA900.
Number of timeseries: 17,936
Source: South African Reserve Bank (SARB)
Update frequency: Monthly
SARB Monthly Release of Selected Data
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) Monthly Release of Statistics represent an abstract of statistics published regularly in the SARB's Quarterly Bulletin. The purpose of the Release is to update selected monthly statistics between publications of the Quarterly Bulletin. Divided into sections covering: Money and banking; Banks and mutual banks; International economic data; Capital market; National government finance; and Economic indicators.
Number of timeseries: 111
Source: SARB
Update frequency: Monthly
SARB Quarterly Bulletin
A review of domestic economic, trade, monetary and public finance developments and is published quartely in March, June, September and December of each year. Divided into sections covering: Money and banking; Banks and mutual banks; International economic data; Capital market; National government finance; and Economic indicators.
Number of timeseries: 5,254
Source: SARB
Update frequency: Monthly
SEIFSA Price and Index Pages
This data set includes Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of South Africa (SEIFSA) indices of wage rates and labour costs for hourly-paid employees in the metal and engineering industry as well as price indices for products and services.
Number of timeseries: 187
Source: SEIFSA
Update frequency: Monthly
Statistics SA Short-Term Indicators
The Statistics SA Short-Term Indicators are updated daily and include the various publications made available by StatsSA:
- Catering & accommodation
- Food and beverages (P6420)
- Construction
- Building statistics (P5041.1)
- Contract Price Adjustment Provisions Work Group Indices (CPAP) (P0151)
- Debt & insolvencies
- Statistics for civil cases for debt (P0041)
- Statistics for liquidations and insolvencies (P0043)
- Electricity
- Electricity generated and available for distribution (P4141)
- Internal trade
- Motor trade sales (P6343.2)
- Retail trade sales (P6242.1)
- Wholesale trade sales (P6141.2)
- Labour
- Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) (P0277)
- Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) (P0211)
- Manufacturing
- Manufacturing production and sales (P3041.2)
- Manufacturing utilisation of production capacity by large enterprises (P3043)
- Mining
- Mining production and sales (P2041)
- National accounts
- Gross domestic product (P0441)
- Population
- Mid-year population estimates (P0302)
- Prices
- Consumer price index (CPI) - COICOP (P0141)
- Consumer price index (CPI) - Historical (P0141.1)
- Producer price index (PPI) (P0142.1)
- Producer price index (PPI) - Historical (P0142.1)
- Tourism
- Tourist accommodation (P6410)
- Transport & communication
- Land transport survey (P7162)
Number of timeseries: 5,773
Source: StatsSA
Update frequency: Daily as data becomes available
The Spark Cash Index
The amount of cash withdrawn at ATMs is a real-time indicator of cash availability and spend in the economy and is compiled by SPARKATM Systems from their transactional records.
Number of timeseries: 15
Source: SPARKATM Systems
Update frequency: Monthly
Vehicle Sales (NAAMSA)
An important source of information about the motor industry in sub-Saharan Africa. NAAMSA releases a monthly report detailing the local sales and exports of passenger, light, medium, heavy and extra heavy vehicles. The NAAMSA databank also contains monthly figures released by Associated Motor Holdings (AMH). AMH is a separate automobile association from NAAMSA, mostly servicing the Indian and Korean motor manufacturers.
Number of timeseries: 158
Source: The National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (NAAMSA)
Update frequency: Monthly
Global Economic Data
The openness of South Africa’s economy necessitates continues insight into the economic activity of our major trading partners. The Global Economic Data provides information on key general economic indicators, financial and capital markets, public finance, balance of payments statistics, national accounts and industry data in a representative number of South Africa’s trading partners.
Number of time-series: 30,000
Source: Statistical agencies and central banks in relevant countries; International institutions such as UNStats, World Bank, OECD, Eurostat, IMF, etc.
b) RSA Economic Analysis
Macroeconomic forecast
A quarterly updated forecast of the South African macroeconomy containing time-series of historical values and projections for between 5 and 6 years. Our model contains exogenous and endogenous variables, covering the global environment, national accounts data, property market indicators, and banking and financial sector series.
Monthly indicators table and monthly or quarterly dashboards
Reports are available in Excel and PDF-formats on a variety of topics, such as the household sector; corporate sector; public sector and fiscal policy; gross domestic product (demand and supply); employment and wages; balance of payments; monetary policy and prices; the bond market; onshore and offshore stock markets; and foreign exchange markets.
Quarterly Reports
- Quantec Economic Forecast & Review – A quarterly economic overview covering the global outlook and a range of domestic topics. Each topic is highlighted with graphs and forecasts for the next few quarters are contained in tables.
- Quantec Consumer Vulnerability Index – A Consumer Vulnerability Index (CVI) was developed and is updated each quarter, measuring the vulnerability of SA consumers as far as their income generating, wealth accumulation (including savings ability) and expenditure levels are concerned. These variables (nine altogether) are analysed individually and combined into a single index, showing its movement over the business cycle.
- Quantec Bond Market Overview – A quarterly overview of the movement of capital market yields, prices and returns and of bond market yield spreads. Returns on bonds are shown in comparison with equity and cash returns. Recent bond trading statistics are provided along with a breakdown of the issuers and ownership of South African bonds.
- Quantec Fiscal Trends Overview – A quarterly overview of fiscal indicators, highlighting the trends and composition of variables such as government revenue; government expenditure; the government deficit; and public sector saving, investment and debt.
- Quantec Fixed Capital Formation and Stock Overview – A quarterly report on the gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) intensity in the South African economy. Contains trends and latest numbers of real growth in and compostion of capital formation by asset and organisation types. Also gives a breakdown of the financing sources for GCFC and inflation rates by asset type and the composition of fixed capital stock and GCFC forecasts.
- Quantec Household Sector Overview – A quarterly overview of the trends pertaining to the household sector. Household income, consumption expenditure (HCE) and saving trends are analysed and 5-year forecasts for the detailed HCE components are provided. Household credit and debt developments are also analysed.
- Quantec Money and Credit Market Trends & Forecasts – The Quantec Money and Credit Market Trends and Forecasts report, is a Quarterly overview of the movement of money market interest rates, liquidity operations and movements, as well as money supply and credit growth trends. Recent trends of the lending by monetary institutions are shown and forecasts provided for selected balance sheet items of the banking sector. The report includes an appendix describing the working of the SARB’s monetary policy transmission mechanism.
Monthly Reports
- Quantec Economic Indicators Overview – A monthly overview of some important economic indicators. The latest leading indicator release of the SA Reserve Bank is discussed and a recession probability indicator is calculated. Interest rate developments, inflation, liquidations, insolvencies, retail sales and mining and manufacturing production developments and trends are also shown and briefly discussed. Tables of key international and monthly indicators are also provided.
- Quantec Equity Market Overview – A monthly overview of the performance of the nine major JSE sectors and the All-share index in terms of returns, valuations and earnings growth rates. Sector return comparisons are graphed and range between month-on-month figures and 5-year average returns. Returns include both capital growth and income (i.e. dividend) yields. Market capitalisation, value traded and volume traded figures are also shown.
- Quantec Financial Conditions Index – The Financial Conditions Index is a 4-page monthly overview of the financial conditions as measured by five variables: real interest rates; the yield curve; earnings yields on shares; excess money supply growth; and real effective exchange rate change. The Financial Conditions Index (FCI) can signal overall financial conditions to economic agents, and can serve as rough indicator for the conduct of monetary policy – especially in times of high financial market volatility. The FCI gives a comprehensive view on the financial variables likely to impact on both future inflation and economic activity levels.
- Quantec Foreign Merchandise Trade Overview – The Foreign Merchandise Trade report is a monthly 6-page publication that provides some detail on the latest monthly foreign trade numbers and longer term trends. Detail on imports and exports are given at the HS 4-digit level (some 23 categories). Figures are seasonally adjusted and are also converted into dollar values. A breakdown is also provided on the most important regional origins of imports and destinations of exports.
- Quantec Forex Market Overview – A monthly overview of the performance of the rand exchange rate against the most important developed and emerging market currencies. Purchasing power parity values for the rand are also shown against the dollar, euro, sterling, yen, Swiss franc and Canadian dollar. Rates of change in the rand against the various currencies are depicted for the past ten years. The changes in forward rates and trade financing rates are also depicted, as are spot, forward, swap and turnover statistics from the SA Reserve Bank.