Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) reports that mining production increased by 1.1% year-on-year in June, with the largest positive contributors having been platinum group metals (PGMs) and gold.

PGMs had been the largest negative contributor to mining output just a month earlier, having declined by 7.2% year-on-year in May before growing by 11.1% year-on-year in June and contributing 2.5 percentage points.

The other major positive contributor to June’s mining output statistics was gold, having increased by 28.5% year-on-year and contributing 3.6 percentage points.

The largest negative contributors to mining output in June were iron-ore, with a decreased growth rate of 18% and contributing -2.4 percentage points, and diamonds, with output having decreased by 41% and contributing -1.8%.

Seasonally adjusted mining production increased by 1.3% in June, compared with May. This followed month-on-month changes of -3.8% in May and 1.6% in April.

Seasonally adjusted mining production increased by 1.5% in the three months ended June 30, compared with the previous three months, with the largest positive contributors having been PGMs (growing by 5.8%), gold (growing by 5.2%), ‘other’ metallic minerals (growing by just under 20%) and coal (growing by 1.5%).

In terms of sales, mineral sales at current prices decreased by 14.3% year-on-year in June.

The largest negative contributors were PGMs, with 30.9% lower sales and contributing -9.4 percentage points; coal, with 26.2% lower sales and contributing -6.2 percentage points; and iron-ore, which saw a 15.5% decrease in sales, which contributed -1.8 percentage points.

‘Other’ non-metallic minerals also dragged on mining sales in June, having been 47.8% lower year-on-year and contributing -2.7 percentage points.

Gold sales grew by 84.8% year-on-year in June, contributing 5.9 percentage points, while chrome – another positive sales contributor – having achieved a 57% improvement in sales year-on-year and contributing 2.4 percentage points.

Stats SA also finds that seasonally adjusted mineral sales at current prices decreased by 12.8% in June, compared with May, following month-on-month changes of 25.4% in May and -12% in April.

In the second quarter of this year, the seasonally adjusted value of mineral sales at current prices was 3.8% lower compared with the first quarter of this year.