South Africa’s government says it is taking urgent steps to protect local jobs in response to sweeping new US tariffs set to take effect this week.
The 30% tariff—imposed by an executive order from US President Donald Trump—targets a wide range of countries and is expected to hit South Africa’s export sector particularly hard, potentially costing tens of thousands of jobs.
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The trade fallout stems from South Africa’s failure to secure a trade deal before the US deadline. As Africa’s largest economy braces for impact, government officials are mobilising to soften the blow.
“South Africa Poses No Threat,” Say Ministers
In a joint statement issued on Monday, South Africa’s trade and foreign ministers strongly defended the country’s trade relationship with the United States.
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“South Africa poses no trade threat to the US economy or its national security,” the ministers said.
They further criticised the basis for the US tariffs, arguing that: “The calculation of the US-SA ‘trade deficit’ ignores the substantial US trade surplus in services, and the complementary nature of the bilateral trade and investment relations between the two countries.”
Job Protection Measures in the Pipeline
To mitigate the expected job losses, the South African government is considering several support mechanisms. These include potential access to the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) for affected workers and the introduction of a “block exemption” from competition rules.
This exemption would allow competing firms to collaborate more closely—something normally restricted by anti-competition laws.
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The goal, according to the government, is to enable exporters to remain competitive and avoid large-scale layoffs during this turbulent period of trade.
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