Abstract
D.Com. (Economics)
For years the South African Economy emphasised the importance of the agricultural industry in
the country. Only relatively recently it seems to have begun to acknowledge the importance of
the industrial and manufacturing sectors. A part of the manufacturing sector is made up of the
motor and related industries.
It is the aim of this thesis to investigate the importance of this sector by developing regional
input-output models for the South African motor vehicle and related industries. "The gap
between elegant, but non-operational, theory and inadequately structured empirical research has
always been serious in economics. Leontief's conception of input-output analysis proposed to
eliminate this gap."
It is therefore imperative that input-output analysis will be used. This thesis firstly explores
input-output analysis and the theory behind it as developed by Polish economist Wassily
Leontief; it then researches the current situation in the South African motor vehicle industry using
data depicted in graphs and the elaboration of these graphs. Thirdly a comprehensive study of
the South African motor vehicle industry follows exploring both its historical origin and recent
developments in the field...