South African Trade Minister Parks Tau and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Wentao, have signed a trade and investment cooperation agreement during this week’s Joint Economic and Trade Commission (JETC) meeting.
The framework is aimed at granting South African exports duty-free access to China while attracting increased Chinese investment into strategic sectors in South Africa. Discussions focused on industrialisation, infrastructure, agricultural trade, renewable energy, and technology cooperation, as well as promoting higher-value South African exports.
The agreement comes amid a tariff dispute with the United States, South Africa’s second-largest trading partner, which has imposed 30% customs duties on selected exports. The new partnership with China is viewed as a strategic move to secure favourable trade terms and diversify South Africa’s export markets, particularly for mining, agriculture, and manufacturing products.
Trade between Pretoria and Beijing has been steadily increasing, with China becoming a major market for South African minerals, agricultural products, and manufactured goods, while South Africa imports machinery, electronics, and consumer goods from China. According to the International Trade Center (ITC), bilateral trade reached $4.5 billion in 2024, a figure expected to grow under the new agreement.
