South Africa vows to expand its trade portfolio to create more balance and tackle a growing trade deficit which heavily favours China
“We need to address challenges such as access to the Chinese market due to factors like tariff and non-tariff barriers, distance and competition from other countries,” he said.
Carlos Lopes, a professor at the University of Cape Town’s Nelson Mandela School of Public Governance, said that while the Chinese market was important for South Africa, it was “not a simple one-to-one replacement for the US”.
South Africa’s exports to the US were US$14.7 billion in 2024, a 4.9 per cent increase from 2023, contributing to a US goods trade deficit with South Africa of US$8.8 billion, according to the US Trade Representative.
However, South Africa’s exports to China totalled US$30.64 billion (220 billion yuan) last year, according to China’s customs.
