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Growth in South Africa’s manufacturing output slowed to just 0.2 per cent in December and was far below analysts forecasts, showing the vital sector still struggling to recover from a recession in 2009.

The number is likely to affect economic growth estimates for the fourth quarter of 2010, but analysts said on its own it was unlikely to shift expectations that interest rates would stay on hold for the next couple of months.

“It’s a bit of a shock. Certainly, we had seen that the PMI (Purchasing Managers Index) number did weaken a little bit in December but it was still above 50,” said Stanlib economist, Kevin Lings.