South Africa in a recession
We closed off the show with an interview with Malcolm Damon – Director at the Economic Justice Network. It has been reported that South Africa's gross domestic product contracted sharply in the first quarter as manufacturers and mining companies slashed output and jobs, pushing Africa's largest economy into recession for the first time since 1992. According to experts, the economy had contracted by 1.8 percent in the last quarter of 2008. The two consecutive quarterly contractions put South Africa in its first recession in 17 years. Statistics SA says the main drags on the economy were manufacturing, down 3.3 percentage points, and mining, down 1.7 percentage points. The government warned that we would likely see another contraction in the second quarter before the economy begins to recover in the second half. Mr Damon explain more about the recession and what it means for an ordinary person on the street. If you want to find out more about the Economic Justice Network you can visit www.ejn.org.za or contact (021) 424 9563.
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