South Africa says Trump’s ‘unilateral imposition’ of 30% tariff ‘not accurate’

ISTANBUL

President Cyril Ramaphosa has noted US counterpart Donald Trump’s “unilateral imposition” of a 30% tariff on South Africa, which is based on a “particular, contested” interpretation of bilateral trade balance, a presidency statement said Tuesday.

The statement said the 30% reciprocal tariff is “not an accurate representation of available trade data,” which shows an average import tariff of 7.6%, with 56% of goods, including 77% of US imports entering duty-free under “most favored nation tariff.”

Praising the US government's commitment to revisiting the proposed 30% tariff pending the outcome of ongoing negotiations, the statement said Pretoria will continue its diplomatic efforts toward “more balanced and mutually beneficial” trade ties with Washington.

Trump announced on Monday tariffs on 14 countries: 25% on Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Kazakhstan and Tunisia; 30% on South Africa and Bosnia and Herzegovina; 32% on Indonesia, 35% Serbia and Bangladesh, a 36% Cambodia and Thailand, and 40% on Laos and Myanmar.

Trump also signed a decree extending the tariff grace period, which was set to expire on July 9, until Aug. 1.

Trump had hosted Ramaphosa in the White House in May. The US is South Africa's second-largest trading partner behind China.