# South African mining output falls 12.7% in August as mineral sales decline > Statistics South Africa reported an annual fall in mining production and mineral sales for August 2026, with platinum-group metals, coal, iron ore and gold among the main drags. - Canonical URL: https://newsverum.com/en/news/south-africa-mining-production-sales-august-2026 - Publisher: Newsverum - Section: Business - Country: South Africa - Published: 2026-10-13T11:57:09+00:00 - Updated: 2026-10-13T11:57:09+00:00 - Event / data period: 2026-08 - Other editions: [Türkçe](https://newsverum.com/tr/news/south-africa-mining-production-sales-august-2026.md), [العربية](https://newsverum.com/ar/news/south-africa-mining-production-sales-august-2026.md), [Français](https://newsverum.com/fr/news/south-africa-mining-production-sales-august-2026.md), [Español](https://newsverum.com/es/news/south-africa-mining-production-sales-august-2026.md), [Deutsch](https://newsverum.com/de/news/south-africa-mining-production-sales-august-2026.md), [Português](https://newsverum.com/pt/news/south-africa-mining-production-sales-august-2026.md) Mining production in South Africa fell 12.7% year on year in August 2026, according to Statistics South Africa's preliminary P2041 release published on 13 October. Seasonally adjusted output was 5.4% lower than in July, extending a monthly decline after a 1.9% fall in July. Platinum-group metals made the largest negative contribution to the annual production change, down 22.5% and subtracting 6.1 percentage points. Coal output fell 11.7% and iron ore 16.2%. Mineral sales at current prices were 15.1% lower than a year earlier; gold sales fell 48.6%, contributing 8.6 percentage points of the total decline. The bulletin identifies these as preliminary monthly estimates. ## Data ### Changes in mining production and sales in August 2026 Year-on-year and seasonally adjusted changes in Statistics South Africa's preliminary P2041 release. Methodology: Values are percentage changes reported for August 2026. Year-on-year comparisons are unadjusted; month-on-month comparisons are seasonally adjusted. Contributions are percentage points. Production volume and mineral sales at current prices are distinct measures; preliminary figures are reproduced at the source's stated precision. | label | value | unit | period | basis | |---|---|---|---|---| | Mining production, year-on-year change | -12.7 | percent | 2026-08 | observed | | Mining production, seasonally adjusted month-on-month change | -5.4 | percent | 2026-08 | observed | | PGM production, year-on-year change | -22.5 | percent | 2026-08 | observed | | PGM contribution to total production change | -6.1 | percentage points | 2026-08 | observed | | Coal production, year-on-year change | -11.7 | percent | 2026-08 | observed | | Iron ore production, year-on-year change | -16.2 | percent | 2026-08 | observed | | Mineral sales at current prices, year-on-year change | -15.1 | percent | 2026-08 | observed | | Gold sales at current prices, year-on-year change | -48.6 | percent | 2026-08 | observed | | Gold contribution to total mineral sales change | -8.6 | percentage points | 2026-08 | observed | | Iron ore sales at current prices, year-on-year change | -23 | percent | 2026-08 | observed | | PGM sales at current prices, year-on-year change | -7.5 | percent | 2026-08 | observed | | Coal sales at current prices, year-on-year change | -7.8 | percent | 2026-08 | observed | Sources: · Download data: [JSON](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/south-africa-mining-production-sales-august-2026/data/august-mining-changes?lang=en&format=json) · [CSV](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/south-africa-mining-production-sales-august-2026/data/august-mining-changes?lang=en&format=csv) ## Sources - [Statistics South Africa]() (Source checked: 2026-10-13; Published: 2026-10-13) --- Cite the canonical URL above. [Editorial standards and corrections](https://newsverum.com/en/editorial)