Doom day prophets who seemed to suggest that the economy was in a recession have been proved wrong, according to recent data.
Firm growth in the agriculture and financial industries offset a potentially catastrophic impact of the strike-hit mining sector in the second quarter.
The economy is battling to stabilise after waves of labour unrest this year dampened corporate confidence, while consumers are facing the impact of rising food and fuel prices.
The economy grew 0.6% in the second quarter after contracting by the same amount in the first three months of this year, Statistics South Africa said. This was compared to a 0.6% drop in the real gross domestic product (GDP) in the first quarter of the year.
Even there is a sentiment amongst some analysts not to read too much into the statistics, the African National Congress (ANC) praised the ability of the economy to be resilient. “It is a result of the firmness and correctness of our economic fundamentals and policies,” it said.