ONFIDENCE levels among private-sector business people remains weak amid muted demand and sharp increases in input costs due to rand weakness, forcing job losses.
This
is according to the latest seasonally adjusted Markit/Standard Bank SA
purchasing managers index (PMI) which rose from 49.1 in December to 49.6
last month, but remained below the critical 50 points level.
A
level below 50 signalled deterioration in business conditions, although
the slight improvement in the index suggested that conditions
deteriorated at a slower pace.
Both demand and supply side PMI
indicators implied sustained weakness in SA’s economy, Standard Bank
economist Kuvasha Naidoo said.
