By Dominic Hughes BBC Correspondent in Johannesburg

HIV/Aids claims about 600 lives in South Africa a day

A survey by the Bureau for Economic Research and the South African Business Coalition on HIV/Aids found that the disease had already hit profits at one third of firms, while half expected to see a downturn over the next five years.

More than a third of businesses said the HIV and Aids crisis was affecting production costs through reducing labour productivity, increased absenteeism, and the loss of experienced and skilled staff.

Many companies had incurred higher recruitment and training costs.

Grim exceptions were companies such as pharmaceutical producers or funeral parlours, who reported that profits were higher as a result of the disease.

Manufacturing woe

Of all the sectors surveyed, manufacturing seems to be the worst affected, relying as it does on a semi-skilled or unskilled low-income workforce, considered a high risk group when it comes to HIV and Aids.

Responses across companies also varied - large firms with more than 500 people seem to be coping better, while smaller businesses are still struggling to respond.

The survey is the largest of its kind conducted in South Africa, covering more than a thousand businesses.

Its findings reflect the severity of the HIV/Aids crisis in the country, where about 600 people die of the disease every day.