Mining production in South Africa slipped by 5.4% year-on-year in May 2026, following a downwardly revised 8% jump in April and worse than the expected 1.5% rise. The decline marked the first contraction in mining activity in six months and the steepest since February 2025. Iron ore was the largest negative contributor, declining 12.7% and subtracting 2.1 percentage points, followed by coal (-6.1%; -1.5 percentage points) and platinum group metals (PGMs), which fell 4.4%. Also, output decreased sharply for diamonds (-17.8%); other metallic minerals (-17.6%); nickel (-16.5%); copper (-14.3%) and other non-metallic minerals (-8.9%), while rising for manganese ore (8.7%) and chromium ore (8.5%). On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, mining output dropped by 5.2% in May, the most since November 2025, after a downwardly revised 3.1% advance in the month before. Mining production shrank by 1.7% in the three months ended May 2026 compared with the previous three months. source: Statistics South Africa

Mining production in South Africa decreased 5.40 percent in May of 2026 over the same month in the previous year. Mining Production in South Africa averaged 0.00 percent from 1981 until 2026, reaching an all time high of 127.50 percent in April of 2021 and a record low of -51.60 percent in April of 2020. This page provides - South Africa Mining Production- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. South Africa Mining Production YoY - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on July of 2026.

Mining production in South Africa decreased 5.40 percent in May of 2026 over the same month in the previous year. Mining Production in South Africa is expected to be 2.10 percent by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. In the long-term, the South Africa Mining Production YoY is projected to trend around 2.00 percent in 2027 and 1.80 percent in 2028, according to our econometric models.



Calendar GMT Reference Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2026-06-11 09:30 AM
Mining Production YoY
Apr 8.2% 2.5% 3.0%
2026-07-14 09:30 AM
Mining Production YoY
May -5.4% 8% 1.5% 1.3%
2026-08-13 09:30 AM
Mining Production YoY
Jun -5.4% 1.8%


Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Bankruptcies 225.00 233.00 Companies May 2026
Changes in Inventories -22424.00 -6246.00 ZAR Million Mar 2026
Electricity Production 18575.00 17144.00 Gigawatt-hour May 2026
Gold Production YoY -4.30 -0.40 percent May 2026
Manufacturing Production YoY -4.30 -2.90 percent May 2026
Manufacturing Production MoM 1.10 -2.60 percent May 2026
Mining Production YoY -5.40 8.00 percent May 2026


South Africa Mining Production YoY
In South Africa, the index of the volume of mining production is a statistical measure of the change in the volume of production. Coal is the most important sector and accounts for 24 percent of total mining production, followed by PGMs (23 percent); gold (16 percent); iron ore (12 percent); other non-metallic minerals (6 percent); diamonds (4 percent); manganese ore and chromium ore (3 percent each); other metallic minerals, building materials and nickel (2 percent each), and copper (1 percent).
Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
-5.40 8.00 127.50 -51.60 1981 - 2026 percent Monthly
NSA

News Stream
South Africa Mining Activity Suffers Surprise Setback
Mining production in South Africa slipped by 5.4% year-on-year in May 2026, following a downwardly revised 8% jump in April and worse than the expected 1.5% rise. The decline marked the first contraction in mining activity in six months and the steepest since February 2025. Iron ore was the largest negative contributor, declining 12.7% and subtracting 2.1 percentage points, followed by coal (-6.1%; -1.5 percentage points) and platinum group metals (PGMs), which fell 4.4%. Also, output decreased sharply for diamonds (-17.8%); other metallic minerals (-17.6%); nickel (-16.5%); copper (-14.3%) and other non-metallic minerals (-8.9%), while rising for manganese ore (8.7%) and chromium ore (8.5%). On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, mining output dropped by 5.2% in May, the most since November 2025, after a downwardly revised 3.1% advance in the month before. Mining production shrank by 1.7% in the three months ended May 2026 compared with the previous three months.
2026-07-14
South Africa Mining Activity Rises Faster in April
Mining production in South Africa climbed by 8.2% year-on-year in April 2026, following a 2.5% rise in the prior month, mainly due to a weak base of comparison. This marked the fifth consecutive month of growth in mining activity, largely supported by PGMs (+36.5%), manganese ore (+19%) and chromium ore (+17.5%). By contrast, output declined for coal (-5.8%); copper (-13.1%), other metallic minerals (-16%); diamonds (-17.1%) and other non-metallic minerals (-4.8%). On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, mining output rose by 3.3%, after a downwardly revised 4.8% decline in the preceding month. Mining production increased by 2.4% in the three months ended April 2026 compared with the previous three months.
2026-06-11
South Africa Mining Output Growth Misses Forecasts
Mining production in South Africa rose by 2.5% year-on-year in March 2026, following a 9.7% jump in the prior month and below market forecasts of a 4.1% advance. This marked the slowest mining growth in the current four-month stretch, with activity easing across key segments including PGMs (10.5% vs 52.3% in February), manganese ore (14.4% vs 27.8%) and nickel (10.5% vs 29.6%). Moreover, production fell for copper (-35.8% vs -42.7%); other non-metallic minerals (-16.8% vs -13.2%); coal (-9.6% vs -6.7%); other metallic minerals (-9.5% vs -0.1%); diamonds (-8.5% vs 13.1%) and iron ore (-2.7% vs -12.3%). Conversely, gold output picked up (17.1% vs 12.8%). On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, mining production slipped by 5.1%, after an upwardly revised 3% rise in the prior month. Mining output increased by 0.6% in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the fourth quarter of 2025.
2026-05-14