South Africa - Gross capital formation (% of GDP)

Gross capital formation (% of GDP) in South Africa was 12.75 as of 2020. Its highest value over the past 60 years was 34.12 in 1981, while its lowest value was 12.75 in 2020.

Definition: Gross capital formation (formerly gross domestic investment) consists of outlays on additions to the fixed assets of the economy plus net changes in the level of inventories. Fixed assets include land improvements (fences, ditches, drains, and so on); plant, machinery, and equipment purchases; and the construction of roads, railways, and the like, including schools, offices, hospitals, private residential dwellings, and commercial and industrial buildings. Inventories are stocks of goods held by firms to meet temporary or unexpected fluctuations in production or sales, and "work in progress." According to the 1993 SNA, net acquisitions of valuables are also considered capital formation.

Source: World Bank national accounts data, and OECD National Accounts data files.

See also:

Year Value
1960 21.88
1961 20.93
1962 19.82
1963 23.99
1964 25.29
1965 27.27
1966 24.78
1967 27.45
1968 25.41
1969 26.24
1970 28.56
1971 30.96
1972 26.53
1973 26.66
1974 30.03
1975 32.34
1976 30.38
1977 29.75
1978 26.67
1979 27.38
1980 31.36
1981 34.12
1982 26.53
1983 27.17
1984 25.54
1985 22.05
1986 21.02
1987 17.78
1988 21.23
1989 22.75
1990 19.41
1991 19.02
1992 16.77
1993 14.16
1994 16.47
1995 17.70
1996 16.57
1997 16.29
1998 16.43
1999 15.66
2000 15.06
2001 14.57
2002 15.04
2003 15.66
2004 16.96
2005 16.83
2006 18.49
2007 19.33
2008 21.29
2009 18.77
2010 17.60
2011 18.85
2012 18.58
2013 19.17
2014 18.49
2015 18.63
2016 16.96
2017 16.61
2018 16.54
2019 16.02
2020 12.75

Limitations and Exceptions: Because policymakers have tended to focus on fostering the growth of output, and because data on production are easier to collect than data on spending, many countries generate their primary estimate of GDP using the production approach. Moreover, many countries do not estimate all the components of national expenditures but instead derive some of the main aggregates indirectly using GDP (based on the production approach) as the control total. Data on capital formation may be estimated from direct surveys of enterprises and administrative records or based on the commodity flow method using data from production, trade, and construction activities. The quality of data on government fixed capital formation depends on the quality of government accounting systems (which tend to be weak in developing countries). Measures of fixed capital formation by households and corporations - particularly capital outlays by small, unincorporated enterprises - are usually unreliable. Estimates of changes in inventories are rarely complete but usually include the most important activities or commodities. In some countries these estimates are derived as a composite residual along with household final consumption expenditure. According to national accounts conventions, adjustments should be made for appreciation of the value of inventory holdings due to price changes, but this is not always done. In highly inflationary economies this element can be substantial.

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Gross domestic product (GDP) from the expenditure side is made up of household final consumption expenditure, general government final consumption expenditure, gross capital formation (private and public investment in fixed assets, changes in inventories, and net acquisitions of valuables), and net exports (exports minus imports) of goods and services. Such expenditures are recorded in purchaser prices and include net taxes on products.

Aggregation method: Weighted average

Periodicity: Annual

Classification

Topic: Economic Policy & Debt Indicators

Sub-Topic: National accounts