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Vol 66 No 16

Published 8th August 2025


South Africa

Tariff calamity deepens rift with Washington

Pretoria warns of long-term economic damage as the US weaponises trade for political pressure

There is little prospect of short term relief from the United States increasing tariffs to 30% on a wide range of South African imports, with the new rates coming into force on 8 August. Bilateral detailed negotiations to cut the rates on specific South African exports such as wine, citrus fruits and motor vehicles could take weeks to prepare. Unlike British and European Union trade representatives, which were locked in line-by-line negotiations with their US counterparts for weeks in the run-up to the 1 August tariff deadline, South African officials were unable to engage officials in Washington DC. That is symptomatic of the political froideur between the two countries.

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