Officials state South Africa is no threat to US
(MENAFN) South Africa has stated that it does not pose a trade threat to the US economy or national security, criticizing Washington’s claims of a trade deficit as ignoring American gains in services and the strong investment ties between the two nations.
US President Donald Trump imposed a 30% tariff on South African goods as part of a broader set of tariffs on imports from various countries, set to take effect this Friday.
Pretoria had attempted to negotiate a fair trade agreement before the initial August 1 deadline after talks were initiated by its Department of Trade, Industry and Competition in June. However, Trump’s recent executive order maintained tariffs on South African products while lowering duties for some neighboring countries like Lesotho and Zimbabwe. Trump cited inadequate offers or misalignment with US economic and security interests from some partners.
In a joint statement from South Africa’s trade and foreign ministries, the country emphasized that its exports do not compete with US producers and do not threaten American industries. They also pointed out that the US-SA trade deficit calculations overlook the significant US trade surplus in services.
While continuing diplomatic efforts to secure a mutually beneficial trade deal with the US, South Africa is also preparing measures to mitigate potential job losses resulting from the unilateral tariffs.
Pretoria aims to negotiate deals that encourage value addition and industrialization rather than exploitative trade relationships reminiscent of colonial-era resource extraction.
The government is considering relaxing competition rules to aid exporters and is working to strengthen trade and investment links across Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and the Americas.
Official data shows that the US represents 7.5% of South Africa’s total exports, making it the country’s third-largest trading partner after the EU and China.
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