Saudi Arabia (SAU) and South Africa (ZAF) Trade | The Observatory of Economic Complexity

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Saudi Arabia-South Africa Trade: In 2023, Saudi Arabia exported $3.13B to South Africa. The main products that Saudi Arabia exported to South Africa were Refined Petroleum ($1.5B), Crude Petroleum ($1.04B), and Nitrogenous Fertilizers ($108M). Over the past 5 years the exports of Saudi Arabia to South Africa have decreased at an annualized rate of 10.5%, from $5.44B in 2018 to $3.13B in 2023.

In 2023, Saudi Arabia did not export any services to South Africa.

South Africa-Saudi Arabia Trade: In 2023, South Africa exported $718M to Saudi Arabia. The main products that South Africa exported to Saudi Arabia were Acyclic Hydrocarbons ($118M), Delivery Trucks ($107M), and Gold ($66.5M). Over the past 5 years the exports of South Africa to Saudi Arabia have increased at an annualized rate of 0.85%, from $688M in 2018 to $718M in 2023.

In 2023, South Africa did not export any services to Saudi Arabia.

Comparison: In 2023, Saudi Arabia ranked 36 in the Economic Complexity Index (ECI 0.76), and 26 in total exports ($300B). That same year, South Africa ranked 59 in the Economic Complexity Index (ECI 0.07), and 34 in total exports ($154B).

Historical Data

Bilateral Trade by Products

Depth

HS2

HS4

HS6

Value

Trade

Growth

Growth (%)

Year

In 2023, Saudi Arabia exported $3.13B to South Africa. The main products exported from Saudi Arabia to South Africa were Refined Petroleum ($1.5B), Crude Petroleum ($1.04B), and Nitrogenous Fertilizers ($108M). During the last 5 years the exports of Saudi Arabia to South Africa have decreased at an annualized rate of 10.5%, from $5.44B in 2018 to $3.13B in 2023.

In 2018, South Africa exported $718M to Saudi Arabia. The main products exported from South Africa to Saudi Arabia were Acyclic Hydrocarbons ($118M), Delivery Trucks ($107M), and Gold ($66.5M). During the last 5 years the exports of South Africa to Saudi Arabia have increased at an annualized rate of 0.85%, from $688M in 2023 to $718M in 2018.

Exports from Saudi Arabia () to South Africa () (2023)

Exports from South Africa () to Saudi Arabia () (2023)

Latest Data

Trade between Saudi Arabia () and South Africa ()

Saudi Arabia Exports

Date

South Africa Exports

Date

Market Competitiveness

Color

Exports

Export Growth

Section

Year

Saudi Arabia
Top DestinationChina$64.4B

South Africa
Top DestinationChina$29.5B

This map shows whether countries import more from Saudi Arabia or South Africa. Each country is colored based on the difference in imports they receive from Saudi Arabia and South Africa or the difference in the growth in imports.

In 2023, countries that imported more from Saudi Arabia than South Africa included China ($64.4B), Japan ($34.7B), and India ($34.8B).

In 2023, countries that imported more from South Africa than Saudi Arabia included Germany ($10.8B), Mozambique ($6.13B), and United Kingdom ($9.01B).

Difference in imports from South Africa () and Saudi Arabia () (2023)

Comparative Advantage Saudi Arabia - South Africa

Flow

Section

HS2

HS4

Scale

Log

Linear

Year

This chart compares trade between Saudi Arabia and South Africa by product, considering products traded by both, Saudi Arabia and South Africa.

During 2023, Saudi Arabia had a large net trade with South Africa in the exports of Mineral Products ($2.58B), Chemical Products ($354M), and Plastics and Rubbers ($140M).

During 2018, South Africa had a large net trade with Saudi Arabia in the exports of Transportation ($156M), Chemical Products ($144M), and Vegetable Products ($128M).

Potential Exports

Depth

Section

HS2

HS4

View

Top 20

Top 15

Top 10

Sort By

Highest Potential

Most Saturated

Section

Top Product Potential Saudi Arabia South Africa+$114MCrude Petroleum

Top Product Potential South Africa Saudi Arabia+$48.6MCars

We estimate the export potential of an economy for each product and destination using an extension of the bilateral relatedness model of Jun et al. (2019).This extended gravity model considers similarities among products and geographies and explains more than 50% of the variance in future trade flows.

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Economic Complexity

Competitive Landscape

Year

This visualization shows the product space at the HS4 level with the flags of Saudi Arabia and South Africa. This means that a dot/product with the flag of Saudi Arabia indicates it has a comparative advantage over South Africa. Similarly, a dot/product with the flag of South Africa indicates it has a comparative advantage over Saudi Arabia.

About

Historical Data

Bilateral Trade by Products

Exports from Saudi Arabia () to South Africa () (2023)

Exports from South Africa () to Saudi Arabia () (2023)

Latest Data

Trade between Saudi Arabia () and South Africa ()

Saudi Arabia Exports

South Africa Exports

Market Competitiveness

Difference in imports from South Africa () and Saudi Arabia () (2023)

Comparative Advantage Saudi Arabia - South Africa

Potential Exports

Potential Exports

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Economic Complexity

Competitive Landscape

Product Space of Saudi Arabia () and South Africa () (2023)

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