According to the latest data released by Statistics South Africa, in February this year the country's producer price index (PPI) for the basic iron and steel industry rose 1.4 percent compared to January and was up 2.6 percent compared to February 2012.
The PPI for exported basic iron and steel in South Africa in the given month rose 0.7 percent compared to the previous month and was down 7.1 percent compared to February 2012. Meanwhile, in South Africa the PPI for imported basic iron and steel remained stable on both year-on-year and month-on-month basis.