JOHANNESBURG, Jan. 14 (Xinhua) -- Rating agency Moody's said on Monday that South African started the year 2019 on a stable outlook with a gradual strengthening of institutions and increasing transparency.

In a report, Moody's said that South Africa's economy will recover slowly but growth will remain well below levels seen in the first half of the decade.

"In South Africa, Moody's projects that real gross domestic product (GDP) growth will reach 1.3 percent in 2019 from an estimated 0.5 percent in 2018. We stabilized the outlook on South Africa's ratings," read the report.

The report does not constitute a ratings action, the agency said.

Moody's pointed out that the country is implementing transparent policy framework which they believe will strengthen the sovereign institutions. It expected the recovery of agricultural output in the country with stable political environment resulting in higher investment.

The rating agency said the country would negatively be affected by the unreliable power supply. "Growth will continue to be hampered by rigidities in the labor market and insufficient and unstable power supply."

South Africa's power utility Eskom resumed load shedding last year.