By Thebe Mabanga
Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau and his International Relations counterpart Ronald Lamola will give an update on Monday, and hopefully a way forward, to the crisis caused by US President Donald Trump’s decision to impose a 30% tariff hike on South Africa’s exports to America as of Thursday.
The briefing comes at a time when there appears to be no solution in sight to the impasse as the US has not formally responded to South Africa’s proposed trade offer.
And, there is little to suggest that South Africa has explored policy alternatives in its tool kit which come at a cost of lost export or tax revenue, or both.
On Friday, President Cyril Ramaphosa stated that South Africa would use diplomatic channels and trade diversification as a response. But trade diversification is a long-term solution, and South Africa’s agriculture and automotive exporters need a solution
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