Pretoria - An estimated monthly average of R16 461 was paid to employees in the formal non-agricultural sector during February 2015, according to Statistics SA's March 2015 Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) survey.
This average reflected a quarterly increase of 0.2% between November 2014 and February 2015 and an annual increase of 7.8% between February 2014 and February 2015.
Average monthly earnings - including bonuses and overtime payments - paid to employees in the formal non-agricultural sector increased by 0.2% between November 2014 and February 2015.
The number of employees in the formal non-agricultural sector of the SA economy decreased by 0.5% from an estimated 8 986 000 employees in December 2014 to an estimated 8 942 000 employees in March 2015, Statistics SA's March 2015 Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) survey.
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Municipal statistics
Stats SA also released financial data on municipalities. These show that municipalities managed to decrease their employee related costs by 8.6% between the fourth quarter of 2014 and the first quarter of 2015, Statistics SA said on Tuesday.
Its latest quarterly financial statistics show that municipal purchases of water increased by 2.8% between the quarters ended December 2014 and March 2015, while purchases of electricity decreased by 4.4% over the same period.
Municipal sales of electricity decreased by 3.8% between the quarters ended December 2014 and March 2015. A decrease of 3.7% was recorded in the sales of water over the same period.
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Industry figures
Trade in South Africa has recorded the largest decrease in turnover (-8%) in the first quarter of 2015 among all industries in the SA economy - excluding agriculture, financial intermediation, insurance and government institutions.
Data released by Stats SA on Tuesday indicated that between the fourth quarter of 2014 and the first quarter of 2015 turnover decreased in seven of the eight industries covered in its quarterly financial statistics (QFS) survey.
The second largest percentage decrease in turnover was recorded in manufacturing (-5.5%), followed by transport, storage and communication (-4.9%); mining and quarrying (-3.5%); electricity, gas and water supply (-2.2%), real estate and other business services - excluding financial intermediation and insurance - (-1.3%) and construction (-0.5%).
An increase (2.9%) was recorded in community, social and personal services (excluding government institutions).
The total turnover of these QFS industries in the first quarter of 2015 was estimated at R1.95trn, a decrease of 5.2% compared with the fourth quarter of 2014.
Total closing inventories at the end of the first quarter of 2015 were estimated at R680 652m, an increase of 1% compared with R674 230m at the end of the fourth quarter of 2014.
Total capital expenditure on property, plant and equipment was estimated at R86 302m in the first quarter of 2015, a decrease of 9.3% compared with R95 104m in the fourth quarter of 2014.
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