South Africa recorded foreign direct investment inflows of 24.4 billion rand ($1.34 billion) in the first quarter of 2024, up from a revised 2.5 billion rand in the previous quarter, central bank data showed on Thursday.
The South African Reserve Bank said in its Quarterly Bulletin that the inflows were largely due to the acquisition of a local vehicle-tracking company by an overseas firm, without naming the company that was bought.
Portfolio investments recorded outflows for the seventh consecutive quarter of 52.0 billion rand in the first three months of 2024, compared to outflows of 9.0 billion rand in the fourth quarter of 2023.
The portfolio outflows reflected the disposal by non-residents of 24.2 billion rand of domestic equities and 27.8 billion rand of domestic debt securities.
“The outflow recorded for debt securities in the first quarter of 2024 could mainly be attributed to the maturity of a $1.5 billion international bond of national government,” the Reserve Bank said.