Global trade relations: where to from here.
As uncertainty looms amid escalations in trade tensions, recent shock tariff announcements and increasing hostility towards South Africa by the US administration, the stakes for Sub-Saharan African exporters could not be higher. While the US market is relatively small for the agriculture sector (accounting for just 4% of our agricultural exports) these developments, together with intensifying friction between the US and China, would create ripple effects across supply chains and weaken the country’s balance of payments, which impacts on the rand-dollar exchange rate for exporters and importers alike.
To mitigate these risks SA must look beyond traditional markets and embrace bilateral and multilateral trade diversification. Diversifying export markets through opportunities such as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and agreements such as the EU–South African Trade, Development and Cooperation Agreement can help maintain trade momentum while reducing overreliance on US markets.
Deepening economic integration and trade among BRICS+ countries presents one of the greatest opportunities, with the original BRICS countries importing, on average close to US$300 billion worth of agricultural products per year. And, although Asia and the Middle East were South Africa’s second-largest agricultural export markets, making up a combined 21% of total exports in 2024, significant opportunities exist to develop markets in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar, as well as India and Vietnam.
In this panel discussion, we will explore and interrogate the topic among panel experts with a view to advising producers and agri-processors – particularly in the grain and livestock sectors given the audience at Nampo – on how to manage the shifting global trade landscape and grow and diversify their export markets.
