More jobs in manufacturing, less in trade

Unit labour costs up
More jobs in manufacturing, less in trade
Jo-Maré Duddy
Employment in manufacturing rose year-on-year in the past quarter, while it decreased in the wholesale and retail trade sector.

According to the BoN’s latest Quarterly Bulletin, the manufacturing sector employed 0.9% more workers in the past quarter compared to the same period in 2022.

In contrast, the wholesale and retail trade sector witnessed a decline, with employment dropping by 0.8% year-on-year (y/y).

The downturn in the wholesale and retail trade sector was particularly pronounced in clothing and vehicle subsectors, the BoN said.

On a quarterly basis, the manufacturing sector continued its upward trajectory, registering a 1.7% increase in employment. Meanwhile, the wholesale and retail trade sector faced a 0.3% decline in employment during the same period.



Wages

The wholesale and retail trade sector saw substantial growth in nominal wage bills and average wages on a yearly basis, increasing by 5.9% and 4.7%, respectively.

This uptick aligns with the sustained growth in real turnover within the sector during the quarter, indicating consistent consumer demand for goods, according to the BoN.

However, on a quarterly basis, while the nominal wage bill increased by 3.2%, average wages experienced a 1.5% decrease.

Similar wage dynamics were observed in the manufacturing sector during the past quarter.

Y/y, the nominal wage bill and average wages in the manufacturing sector rose by 2.2% and 1.3%, respectively.

However, on a quarterly basis, the nominal wage bill increased by 0.8%, while average wages saw a slight decrease of 0.9%.



Unit labour costs

A critical factor affecting the manufacturing sector's competitiveness in the export market is the unit labour costs.

In the past quarter, the manufacturing sector faced a substantial y/y increase of 10.6% in unit labour costs, primarily driven by a decline in output per worker and increased average wages in various subsectors, according to the BoN.

However, quarter-on-quarter, there was a marginal decrease of 0.6%.

This rise in unit labour costs poses challenges to the competitiveness of Namibian products in the global export market, the BoN said.

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Namibian Sun 2024-05-19

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Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 414.72/OZ UP +1.55% | Copper US$ 5.04/lb UP +4.12% | Zinc US$ 3 059.30/T UP 0.11% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 84.28/BBP UP +0.60% | Platinum US$ 1 084.88/OZ UP +2.19%