Germany overtook the US as the second-largest buyer of South African goods after US President Donald Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs took effect, new data showed.
The South African Reserve Bank said the tariffs hit South Africa’s value-added goods the hardest, with the country’s vehicle and transport equipment sector absorbing the bulk of the damage. China remains the top destination for South African exports. While South Africa exports few manufactured and value-added goods, Beijing has enhanced its diplomatic soft power with a tariff-free access deal that came into effect this month.
And while the US may regain its former standing after the country’s Supreme Court invalidated the levies, tensions between the two countries have been growing over matters including Pretoria’s domestic Black empowerment policies, alignment with the BRICS grouping, and genocide case against Israel, as well as US accusations that it is “cozying up to Iran.”
