Ramaphosa fires back over Trump's 30% tariff strike

News24

2 days ago

President Cyril Ramaphosa said US President Donald Trump's decision to impose a 30% tariff on South African exports was not based on accurate data.
Ramaphosa said that South Africa is yet to see the US trade template for African countries, but that he instructed the negotiation team to urgently engage with the US on SA's original, rejected deal.
The SA president also urged local exporters to 'accelerate their diversification efforts'.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said US President Donald Trump's decision to impose a 30% tariff on South African exports was not based on accurate data. The SA president also urged local exporters to 'accelerate their diversification efforts'.
In a social media statement, Ramaphosa noted correspondence from Trump on the 'unilateral' imposition of a 30% trade tariff against South Africa.
In a letter to Ramaphosa, Trump claimed that the 30% tariff is not nearly enough to eliminate the trade deficit between the countries.
Ramaphosa said that the tariff is based on a 'contested' interpretation of SA duties on US goods. The average tariff on US imports to SA is below 8%, with almost 80% of US goods entering SA without any import duties.
The letter to Ramaphosa added that the US would 'perhaps' consider reducing the tariff if South Africa reduced its tariff and non-tariff barriers to US imports. Ramaphosa welcomed this commitment by the US government.
In May, South Africa proposed a trade deal to the US. It offered commitments for US natural gas and fracking technology imports in exchange for duty-free quotas for steel and vehicles. SA also offered the US farmers tariff-free access to the local market on a counter-seasonal basis (when SA fruit is not in season).
But this 'framework deal' was rejected, and the US instead created a new trade 'template' for all African countries, which SA will have to adhere to. South Africa has asked for more time to negotiate a trade deal, but this has also been rejected by the US.
On Tuesday, Ramaphosa said that South Africa is yet to see the template but that he instructed the team to urgently engage with the US on the original deal.
'This framework deal addresses the issues initially raised by the US, including South Africa's supposed trade surplus, unfair trade practices and lack of reciprocity from the US. The President urges government trade negotiations teams and South African companies to accelerate their diversification efforts in order to promote better resilience in both global supply chains and the South African economy.'
READ | SA's citrus farmers brace for Trump tariffs impact
Some fourteen countries received letters from Trump on Monday.
The US plans to impose tariffs of 25% on goods from Japan, South Korea, Tunisia, Malaysia and Kazakhstan, with levies of 30% on South Africa, Bosnia and Herzegovina, climbing to 32% on Indonesia, 35% on Serbia and Bangladesh, 36% on Cambodia and Thailand and 40% on Laos and Myanmar.
Trump has published several of these letters addressed to world leaders announcing the tariffs he will impose on their nations. Except for the recipients' names and the tariff percentage that had been decided, the letters have been identical.
The higher tariffs take effect from August 1, and notably will not combine with previously announced sectoral tariffs, such as those on automobiles and steel and aluminium.
Trump initially announced that he would impose a 31% tariff on imports into the US from South Africa at his 'Liberation Day' tariff announcement on 2 April. Some key South African exports to the US, including precious metals like gold and platinum, were placed on a list of products that are exempt from the tariff package.
Trump paused the tariffs he announced for 90 days because a number of countries wanted to negotiate after the announcement. That pause was set to finish on 9 July – the last day for negotiations.
Meanwhile, many South African exports to the US have slumped since April, when Trump in effect scrapped SA's duty-free access for many products under AGOA.
Vehicle exports were particularly hard hit by a new 10% tariff, with data from the SA Revenue Service showing a 30% fall in exports of vehicles and automotive accessories to the US in April and May 2025 compared to the same period last year. SA iron and steel exports were also hit by higher tariffs.
In contrast, SA's biggest US imports – particularly machinery and vehicles, aircraft and vessels – have largely remained unchanged in April and May, while imports of US oil and petroleum have surged. In April and May this year, SA imported R4.3 billion in US oil and petroleum – almost double the value in the same period last year.