South African Mining Output Rises in March
According to Mining Weekly, South Africa’s mining industry recorded year-on-year growth of 2.5% in March, with platinum group metals (PGMs) and manganese ore contributing the most to the increase.
Data released by Statistics South Africa showed that platinum group metals production rose by 10.5% during the month, contributing 2.6 percentage points to total mining growth.
Gold production also performed strongly, increasing by 17.1% and contributing 1.6 percentage points, while manganese ore output climbed 14.4%, contributing an additional 1.1 percentage points.
Coal and Iron Ore Remain Weak
Coal production was the largest negative factor in the mining sector, declining 9.6% year-on-year and reducing overall growth by 2.5 percentage points.
Seasonally adjusted figures showed that mining production fell 5.1% month-on-month in March, following increases of 3% in February and 3.5% in January.
For the first quarter overall, seasonally adjusted mining production increased by 0.6% compared with the fourth quarter of 2025.
During the quarter, PGMs remained the strongest contributor, with output rising 8.5% and contributing 2.3 percentage points. Gold production increased 8.2%, adding 0.7 percentage points.
Iron ore and coal continued to weigh on overall performance. Iron ore production declined 6.6%, reducing growth by 1 percentage point, while coal production fell 3.4%, subtracting 0.8 percentage points.
Mineral Sales Surge on Strong PGM Prices
Statistics South Africa also reported a sharp increase in mineral sales values.
At current prices, total mineral sales in March increased 30.2% year-on-year, driven mainly by platinum group metals and chromium ore.
PGM sales surged 113.5%, contributing 21 percentage points to overall sales growth. Gold sales rose 51.7%, while chromium ore sales increased 38.6%.
Iron ore sales, however, fell 18.7%, making it the largest negative contributor and reducing growth by 2.5 percentage points.
Seasonally adjusted mineral sales declined 8.6% month-on-month in March after rising 9% in February and falling 8.4% in January.
For the first quarter overall, seasonally adjusted mineral sales increased 6.6% compared with the previous quarter.
PGMs Continue to Support South African Mining
The latest data highlights the continued importance of platinum group metals to South Africa’s mining sector.
Strong PGM production and pricing continue to offset weakness in bulk commodities such as coal and iron ore, while gold production has also shown signs of recovery amid stronger global precious metals prices.
South Africa remains one of the world’s leading producers of platinum group metals, which are widely used in automotive catalysts, hydrogen technologies, electronics, and industrial applications.
[出处 – 上海有色网] 一季度南非采矿业微幅增长 铂族金属和锰矿石贡献最大 https://news.smm.cn/news/103907243
