Notwithstanding the feeble global economic condition, there is little doubt that internal dynamics, especially in the political environment, have emerged as the main constraint to growth in South Africa. These domestic pressures are weighing on confidence and, in turn, on levels of fixed investment.
Those companies most exposed to the South African project economy are struggling to sustain order books, while margins have come under pressure. There has also been a concerted effort by a number of engineering contractors, in particular, to seek work elsewhere as South Africa’s project pipeline fails to live up to its earlier promise.
These fragilities are apparent in this Project in Progress supplement, where very few brand new projects are featured. Nevertheless, there are still a number of developments under way across a broad range of resources and industrial subsectors. There is, however, little question that South Africa’s fixed-investment environment is nowhere near as lively as it could be in light of the country’s resources potential.
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