Full trade & compliance profile
South Africa — Trade & Compliance
South Africa's trade profile consolidates its merchandise flow from CEPII BACI, the preferential agreements it has entered from the World Bank, the international cargo conventions it has ratified from the UN Treaty Collection, and its applied tariff, VAT and currency of record from the World Bank, the EU and ISO 4217.
Every figure is shown as its named source records it and dated where the source dates it; trade partners and product codes link to their own pages where logibook profiles them.
5
trade agreements
5
cargo treaties
7.64%
MFN applied tariff
Memberships & standing
DatabookThe Record of Consolidated Knowledge
South Africa beyond logistics?
Trade Flow
Top export markets
- 1China18.4%
- 2United Kingdom8.3%
- 3USA8.1%
- 4India7.6%
- 5Germany5.2%
Leading export goods (HS2)
- 1Pearls, precious stones & metals33.8%
- 2Ores, slag, ash13.4%
- 3Vehicles10.7%
- 4Mineral fuels & oils6.9%
- 5Iron & steel4.5%
Leading import goods (HS2)
- 1Mineral fuels & oils19.6%
- 2Machinery & mechanical appliances13.3%
- 3Electrical machinery10.4%
- 4Vehicles8.7%
- 5Pearls, precious stones & metals4.4%
Fastest-rising export markets
- 1United Kingdom+3.96pp
- 2China+1.80pp
- 3USA+1.04pp
Declining export markets
- 1Japan−2.19pp
- 2Germany−1.96pp
- 3Switzerland−1.83pp
Fastest-rising export goods
- 1Pearls, precious stones & metals+1.91pp
- 2Vehicles+1.63pp
- 3Ores, slag, ash+1.54pp
Declining export goods
- 1Mineral fuels & oils−4.62pp
- 2Iron & steel−0.81pp
- 3Inorganic chemicals−0.46pp
Showing the leading partners and product groups by trade share; the full bilateral flow matrix is in — CEPII BACI · 2024
Preferential Trade Agreements
AfCFTA (African Continental Free Trade) Agreement2019
EU - SADC2016
Southern African Development Community (SADC) - Accession of Seychelles2015
Southern African Customs Union (SACU)2004
EU - South Africa2000
International Cargo Treaties
- ✓Convention on the International Maritime Organization. Geneva, 6 March 1948
- ✓Agreement relating to the implementation of Part XI of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982. New York, 28 July 1994
- ✓Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks. New York, 4 August 1995
- ✓Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone. Geneva, 29 April 1958
- ✓International Convention on the Harmonization of Frontier Controls of Goods. Geneva, 21 October 1982
Fiscal & Tariffs
Currency
ZAR
Rand
MFN applied tariff
7.64%
simple average (2022)
Key commodities
Top agricultural output
Sugar cane
16.7M t
Top mineral output
iron ore
63.2M tonnes (metric)
Energy production
Primary energy production
0.2 quadrillion Btu
Top item per category of 129 commodities tracked — full lists: FAOSTAT · 2026-05 · British Geological Survey · U.S. EIA
All Sources
Referencelogibook trade-bloc referencelogibook trade-bloc reference
Compiled (public facts)
commoditythe U.S. Energy Information Administrationthe U.S. Energy Information Administration
Public domain (US gov)↗
Referenceinternational organisation membership recordsinternational organisation membership records
Public (official lists)↗