It would be in South Africa’s best interests to continue diversifying its import and export markets, with the Far East offering a significant opportunity.With China officially the country’s largest trade partner, it is a region that South African importers and exporters know well, yet trade hasn’t expanded as much as many would think.According to Francois Fouche from Growth Diagnostics and the Centre for African Management and Markets at GIBS, there has not been much of a shift in South African imports from China over the past two decades.“The biggest proportion of our goods come out of China. There is no surprise there as that is the case for many countries. China has established itself as the manufacturing hub of the world, and since China became part of the World Trade Organization in 2001, it has dominated in the export of manufactured goods.”But, he said, if one looked at imports over a longer period of time, it was clear to see that the proportion of the country’s imports had not changed much. “Yes, we are importing more from Asia than we did in the past, but not vastly so if we look at the bigger picture over the past 25 years.”China and other countries in the East have repeatedly indicated their willingness to grow trade with South Africa.“The world we live in has become very integrated. We are connected by global f lows – not just of goods and services, but of capital, people and, increasingly more so, of ideas and data,” said Fouche. “Global value chains have been built on these f lows, creating a far more prosperous world than what we had 30 years ago. If we cast our minds back, in light of the pandemic and the Ukraine war, even to 2016, when we saw rising tension between the US and China, the importance of this interconnectivity is clear. No region is self-sufficient, not even the most advanced countries in the world. The challenge is to harness the benefits of this level of interconnectivity.” He said this was even more critical where products were concentrated in places of origin like China. “China matters to the world and South Africa,” emphasised Fouche.Trade between South Africa and China, in particular, is expected to see growth. In 2021, two-way trade exceeded $54 billion.More recently, Chinese President Xi Jinping said the country was ready to strengthen practical cooperation with South Africa under Brics and the Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (Focac), focusing on cooperation in new sectors such as 5G, the digital economy, high-tech, e-commerce, smart cities and clean energy.Speaking shortly after a meeting with President Cyril Ramaphosa, Xi said the two countries would strengthen the synergy between the Belt and Road Initiative and the South African Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan, cooperate more closely on trade, investment and energy, advance the implementation of Focac outcomes in South Africa, support Chinese companies in investing and doing business here, and expand China’s import of quality products from South Africa.
