JSE-listed Afrimat’s Construction Index (ACI) for the first quarter broadly followed the same “disappointing trend” evident in overall economic activity during the quarter, with gross domestic product (GDP) having contracted by more than 3% quarter-on-quarter. Economist Dr Roelof Botha, who compiles the index on behalf of Afrimat, on Thursday said it was, nevertheless, encouraging to note that the first-quarter ACI had improved on a year-on-year basis, which was better than the zero real growth recorded for the economy as a whole since the first quarter of last year.
