MBABANE — The Central Statistics Department has reported a strong rebound in Eswatini’s economy, with the Kingdom’s real Gross Domestic Product growing 5.8 percent year-on-year in the third quarter of 2025. The quarterly report, released by the Ministry of Economic Planning and Development, shows a marked improvement from 1.9 percent growth recorded in the same period last year.
Quarter-on-quarter growth for July to September stood at 2.1 percent, slightly down from 2.6 percent in the second quarter. The primary sector, which includes mining and forestry, led growth with an 11.8 percent increase, contributing 7.7 percent to total industry output. Mining and quarrying alone surged by 65.3 percent while forestry expanded 13.4 percent.
The secondary sector, accounting for 37.7 percent of GDP, grew 9.9 percent. Manufacturing rose 10 percent, construction climbed 13 percent, and electricity supply expanded 5.6 percent. The largest contributor, the tertiary sector, which makes up 54.5 percent of GDP, achieved 6.2 percent growth, with wholesale and retail trade increasing 7.2 percent, information and communication surging 30.6 percent, and financial and insurance activities rising 9.9 percent.
Alongside the GDP report, the Central Statistical Office released the Consumer Price Index for November 2025, showing headline inflation at 2.4 percent. This is down from 2.9 percent in October and 3.7 percent in November 2024. Goods inflation measured 2.5 percent while services rose 2.4 percent. Month-on-month, prices remained largely unchanged.
Key contributors to inflation included housing and utilities at 1.2 percent, clothing and footwear at 0.4 percent, and education at 0.3 percent. Categories showing notable changes year-on-year were restaurants and hotels, which dropped from 29.4 percent to -5.2 percent due to falling accommodation and catering prices, and alcohol, tobacco, and narcotics, which eased to 4.3 percent from 12.2 percent. Food and non-alcoholic beverages saw no change, with slower growth in milk, cheese, eggs, fruit and vegetable juices, and a decline in bread and cereals.
The CPI is compiled monthly from prices collected in retail outlets across all four regions of the Kingdom. It serves as a key economic indicator for monitoring inflation, guiding policy decisions, adjusting salaries, and deflating national accounts.
The Ministry of Economic Planning and Development urges continued cooperation from businesses to ensure accurate data collection for effective monitoring of Eswatini’s economic performance.
Discussion about this post