JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Mining production increased by 18.8% year-on-year in March, with the highest positive growth rates recorded for platinum-group metals (PGMs), at 132.2%, manganese ore, at 17.3% and nickel at 15%.
The main contributors to the 18.8% increase were PGMs, contributing 13.1 percentage points; coal, contributing 2.5 percentage points; and manganese ore, contributing 1 percentage point, said Statistics South Africa (Stats SA).
The seasonally adjusted mining production increased by 7.1% month-on-month in March.
This followed month-on-month changes of 4% in February and -3.2% in January, noted Stats SA.
Meanwhile, seasonally adjusted mining production increased by 1.9% in the first quarter of the year, compared with the previous quarter. The main contributor to the 1.9% increase was PGMs with a 3.4 percentage point contribution.