South Africa’s largest farm-industry physique has commissioned a assessment of its knowledge after official statistics confirmed a a lot deeper stoop within the agriculture sector than it had foreseen.

The nation’s financial system unexpectedly contracted 0.3% within the third quarter, after the agriculture sector slumped 28.8%, in accordance with a report launched by the statistics company Tuesday.

“We expected a decline, but not to the extent” mirrored within the knowledge, particularly contemplating the rise in agricultural exports through the interval, Agri SA Chief Executive Officer Johann Kotze mentioned.

A mid-summer drought noticed manufacturing of corn, a staple meals, drop by about 23% and crimped output of soybeans, wheat, sunflower and greens.

Exports rose 5% to $4.12 billion within the third quarter in contrast with a yr earlier, whereas their mixed worth for the primary 9 months of 2024 elevated 4% to $10.55 billion, in accordance with Trade Map knowledge.

Agri SA has requested the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy, specialist agricultural analysis agency, to conduct the assessment, Kotze mentioned.

Bloomberg wasn’t instantly in a position to attain BFAP for remark.

The agricultural {industry} slumped for a second straight quarter, pulling gross home down by 0.7 proportion level, Statistics South Africa mentioned.

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