South Africa: Capital investment, percent of GDP

The latest value from 2025 is 13.87 percent, a decline from 14.07 percent in 2024. In comparison, the world average is 23.08 percent, based on data from 130 countries. Historically, the average for South Africa from 1960 to 2025 is 19.84 percent. The minimum value, 12.35 percent, was reached in 2020 while the maximum of 31.9 percent was recorded in 1981. See the global rankings for that indicator or use the country comparator to compare trends over time.

The capital investment in South Africa and other countries is calculated as the purchases of new plant and equipment by firms, as percent of GDP. A high number is good for long-term economic growth as current investment leads to greater future production.

Definition: Gross capital formation includes acquisitions less disposals of produced assets for purposes of fixed capital formation, inventories or valuables. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.