Foreign trade of South Africa

Part of a series on
World trade
Policy Import Export Balance of trade Trade law Trade pact Trade bloc Trade creation Trade diversion Export orientation Import substitution Trade finance Trade facilitation Trade route Domestic trade Tax
Restrictions Trade barriers Tariffs Non-tariff barriers Import quotas Tariff-rate quotas Import licenses Customs duties Export subsidies Technical barriers Bribery Exchange rate controls Embargo Safeguards Countervailing duties Anti-dumping duties Voluntary export restraints
History Mercantilism Protectionism Laissez-faire Free trade Economic nationalism Economic integration
Organizations International Monetary Fund International Trade Centre World Trade Organization World Customs Organization International Chamber of Commerce
Economic integration Preferential trading area Free-trade area Currency union Customs union Single market Economic union Fiscal union Customs and monetary union Economic and monetary union
Issues Intellectual property rights Smuggling Competition policy Government procurement Outsourcing Globalization Fair trade Trade justice Emissions trading Trade sanctions War Currency war Trade costs Trade war Trade and development
Lists Imports Exports Tariffs Largest consumer markets Leading trade partners
By country Trade mission Trading nation United States Argentina Pakistan Romania Vietnam India
Theory Comparative advantage Competitive advantage Heckscher–Ohlin model New trade theory Economic geography Intra-industry trade Gravity model of trade Ricardian trade theories Balassa–Samuelson effect Linder hypothesis Leontief paradox Lerner symmetry theorem Terms of trade
v t e

Since the end of apartheid, foreign trade in South Africa has increased, following the lifting of several sanctions and boycotts which were imposed as a means of ending apartheid.

South Africa is the second largest producer of gold in Africa^[1] and is the world's largest producer of chrome, manganese, platinum, vanadium and vermiculite, the second largest producer of ilmenite, palladium, rutile and zirconium.^[2] It is also the world's third largest coal exporter.^[3] Although, mining only accounts for 3% of the GDP, down from around 14% in the 1980s.^[4] South Africa also has a large agricultural sector and is a net exporter of farming products.

Principal international trading partners of South Africa—besides other African countries—include Germany, the United States, China, Japan, the United Kingdom and Spain.^[5] Chief exports include corn, diamonds, fruits, gold, metals and minerals, sugar,coal, and wool. Machinery and transportation equipment make up more than one-third of the value of the country's imports. Other imports include chemicals, manufactured goods, and lots more, mainly found in other hot country mainly Spanish countries.