According to the latest data released by Statistics South Africa, in July this year the country's producer price index (PPI) for the basic iron and steel industry decreased by 1.5 percent compared to June and was up 8.9 percent compared to July last year.
Meanwhile, in June the PPI for exported basic iron and steel in South Africa increased by 2.8 percent compared to May and was up by 5.7 percent compared to the same month of 2015, while the index for exported products of iron and steel increased by 10.1 percent month on month and was up seven percent year on year. In addition, in South Africa the PPI for imported basic metals in June this year increased by 6.3 percent month on month and was up 2.4 percent year on year.