Former British prime minister Harold Wilson said: "A week is a long time in politics." In statistics, just two days can seem even longer - as demonstrated yesterday and today.
Over these two days, Statistics SA has released data enabling in-depth analysis of the economy, the labour market and the financial performance of local and provincial governments as well as the private sector.
Wilson also said: "One man's wage rise is another man's price increase." The August 2007 consumer price index (CPI) and production price index (PPI), released yesterday and today, respectively, demonstrate the relevance of this statement.
Consumer inflation is measured in different ways for different areas. Headline inflation is reported on for various urban areas, rural areas and the total country. The consumer price index excluding interest on mortgage bonds (CPIX), which the Reserve Bank uses to monitor its inflation targets, is reported on for the same areas, as is core inflation (which excludes certain items from the CPI on the grounds that price changes are the result of policy).
According to yesterday's release, the headline CPI annual inflation rate last month was 6.7 percent, or 30 basis points lower than in July, year on year. The annual change in CPIX was 6.3 percent, or 20 basis points lower than in July.
PPI is reported on for all commodities for consumption in South Africa. This is broken down into the rate of change for locally produced commodities and imported commodities. PPI data for August 2007 is due for release today.
The annual percentage change involves the change in the index of the relevant month compared with the index of the same month in the previous year, expressed as a percentage. This percentage is generally accepted as the yardstick of PPI inflation.
A range of financial statistics for provincial government, local government and the private sector was also due for release this week.
The quarterly financial statistics survey for the three months to June 2007, due for publication today, covers a sample of private sector, non-agricultural businesses: mining and quarrying, manufacturing, electricity, gas and water supply, construction, trade, transport, storage and communication, real estate and other business services (excluding financial intermediation and insurance) and community, social and personal services (excluding government institutions).
Financial statistics of provincial government for the 2005/06 financial year was released yesterday. For the first time, this release includes comparative figures of the previous year for cash receipts and payments for operating activities, purchases of non-financial assets and cash flows from sales of non-financial assets.
Local government finance is of particular importance, given that this is the tier of government responsible for service delivery. Today's release contains municipalities data for the quarters to June 2006, March 2007 and June 2007.
The survey is designed to obtain financial information of local government institutions relating to the consolidated balance sheet; the income statement and appropriations for rates and general services, and housing and trading services. The key findings include data on purchases and sales of water, electricity and gas, and changes in fixed assets.
Stats SA yesterday released the results of the latest labour force survey (LFS) and quarterly employment survey (QES): the statistical heart of employment creation and unemployment rates.
The basic difference between the two surveys lies in their objectives, concepts and definitions used, and the methods of data collection.
The QES is based on information from employer payroll records and is primarily aimed at tracking the demand for labour in the different sectors. The LFS is a household survey about the supply of labour.
The LFS provides the best overall measure of employment in both formal and informal sectors. The value of the QES lies in its industrial dissection of formal sector trends.
At core, the LFS measures labour supply, the contribution of labour to household income, and unemployment rates; the QES measures labour costs and changes in the demand for labour.
The LFS provides estimates of the level of employment and unemployment in both formal and informal sectors, nationally and provincially. The QES provides estimates of the industry composition of employment trends, to assess where in the economy employment is growing. It provides average monthly earnings data to determine trends in remuneration, as well as an input calculation of employee remuneration in the national accounts.
Analysis of the data released yesterday and today will occupy analysts, policy makers and commentators for some time, as many burning socioeconomic issues are dissected, and as the new data is brought to the centre of informed debate, contestation and evaluation.