South Africa: Manufacturing, value added (constant 2015 US$)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, South Africa's manufacturing, value added (constant 2015 US$) fell 1.2% on 2024 (from US$41.03 billion to US$40.55 billion).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was +1.5% and a typical year strayed about 4.4% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 15.8% in 1964 and the biggest yearly fall was 12.1% in 2020. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 the straight-line trend is downward, about US$398.47 million a year. A straight line explains 43% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2025, South Africa had the 37th highest value of the 136 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to South Africa in the 2025 ranking

• Pakistan — 33rd of 136: US$50.65 billion
• Nigeria — 34th of 136: US$43.61 billion
• Colombia — 35th of 136: US$41.23 billion
• Romania — 37th of 136: US$37.98 billion
• Finland — 38th of 136: US$35.35 billion
• Kazakhstan — 39th of 136: US$30.16 billion

What this measures

Manufacturing includes industries classified in ISIC (Rev. 3) major division C and is defined as the physical or chemical transformation of materials or components into new products. Value added is the contribution to the economy by a producer or an industry or an institutional sector, which is estimated by the total value of output produced and deducting the total value of intermediate consumption of goods and services used to produce that output. This indicator is expressed in constant prices, meaning the series has been adjusted to account for price changes over time. The reference year for this adjustment is 2015. This indicator is expressed in United States dollars.

Limitations: Ideally, industrial output should be measured through regular censuses and surveys of firms. But in most developing countries such surveys are infrequent, so earlier survey results must be extrapolated using an appropriate indicator. The choice of sampling unit, which may be the enterprise (where responses may be based on financial records) or the establishment (where production units may be recorded separately), also affects the quality of the data. Moreover, much industrial production is organized in unincorporated or owner-operated ventures that are not captured by surveys aimed at the formal sector.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a gap-filled total.

All 66 values

Manufacturing, value added (constant 2015 US$) in nearby economies

• Angola — US$7.85 billion (2025)
• Benin — US$2.04 billion (2025)
• Botswana — US$1.05 billion (2025)
• Burkina Faso — US$1.84 billion (2025)
• Burundi — US$336.49 million (2025)
• Cabo Verde — US$122.73 million (2025)
• Cameroon — US$6.37 billion (2025)
• Central African Republic — US$447.72 million (2023)
• Chad — US$1.32 billion (2024)
• Comoros

More economic policy & debt data for South Africa

• Trade in services (% of GDP) — 9.32% (2025)
• Communications, computer, etc. (% of service imports, BoP) — 44.9% (2025)
• Primary income payments (BoP, current US$) — US$20.32 billion (2025)
• Imports of goods and services (current US$, BoP) — US$126.24 billion (2025)
• Insurance and financial services (% of service imports, BoP) — 5.58% (2025)
• Goods imports (current US$, BoP) — US$104.47 billion (2025)
• Service imports (current US$, BoP) — US$21.77 billion (2025)
• Charges for the use of intellectual property, payments (BoP, current US$) — US$1.74 billion (2025)
• Imports of goods, services and primary income (current US$, BoP)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is South Africa's manufacturing, value added (constant 2015 US$)?

US$40.55 billion in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1960?

It is up 509.93% from US$6.65 billion in 1960 (2.82% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was US$44.17 billion in 2018 and the lowest US$6.65 billion in 1960.

How does South Africa rank?

37th highest of 136 economies with data for 2025.

Is the latest change in manufacturing, value added (constant 2015 US$) unusual for South Africa?

In 2025, South Africa's manufacturing, value added (constant 2015 US$) fell 1.2% on 2024 (from US$41.03 billion to US$40.55 billion). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was +1.5% and a typical year strayed about 4.4% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator NV.IND.MANF.KD, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs); National Accounts data files, Central Banks; Staff estimates, World Bank (WB) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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