United States (USA) and South Africa (ZAF) Trade

2023

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Exports $6.85BRnk 42 / 220

2023

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About

United States-South Africa Trade: In 2023, United States exported $6.85B to South Africa. The main products that United States exported to South Africa were Crude Petroleum ($424M), Planes, Helicopters, and/or Spacecraft ($369M), and Petroleum Gas ($254M). Over the past 5 years the exports of United States to South Africa have increased at an annualized rate of 5.79%, from $5.17B in 2018 to $6.85B in 2023.

In 2017, United States exported services to South Africa worth $2.71B, with Travel ($629M), Royalties and license fees ($590M), and Financial services ($479M) being the largest in terms of value.

South Africa-United States Trade: In 2023, South Africa exported $13B to United States. The main products that South Africa exported to United States were Platinum ($3.42B), Cars ($1.6B), and Other Precious Metal Products ($1.37B). Over the past 5 years the exports of South Africa to United States have increased at an annualized rate of 9.1%, from $8.42B in 2018 to $13B in 2023.

In 2023, South Africa did not export any services to United States.

Comparison: In 2023, United States ranked 10 in the Economic Complexity Index (ECI 1.5), and 2 in total exports ($1.86T). That same year, South Africa ranked 59 in the Economic Complexity Index (ECI 0.07), and 34 in total exports ($154B).

Company data: In 2023, leading companies such as Loblaws Supermarkets (979), SAC (Société des alcools du Québec) (718), and Continental Tire (504) were at the forefront of exporting goods from South Africa to the United States. Conversely, Other (816), Wp Fresh Distributors (pty) Ltd (532), and Continental Tyre Sa (pty) Ltd (450) were notable for importing products to South Africa from the United States.

Latest Trends

November, 2024

About

Overview In November 2024, United States exported $476M and imported $1.32B from South Africa, resulting in a negative trade balance of $848M. Between November 2023 and November 2024 the exports of United States have decreased by $-20.3M (-4.09%) from $497M to $476M, while imports increased by $91.2M (7.4%) from $1.23B to $1.32B.

Trade In November 2024, the top exports of United States to South Africa were Diamonds ($49.4M), Motor vehicles; parts and accessories (8701... ($45.1M), Refined Petroleum ($38.1M), Commodities not elsewhere specified ($26.8M), and Cars ($24M). In November 2024 the top imports of United States from South Africa were Platinum ($302M), Cars ($253M), Ferroalloys ($72.7M), Diamonds ($53.9M), and Titanium Ore ($28.1M).

Origins In November 2024 the exports of United States were mainly from Texas ($93.9M), California ($53.4M), Illinois ($48M), Michigan ($24.1M), and Florida ($22.5M), while imports destinations were mainly New York ($629M), New Jersey ($193M), Maryland ($89.7M), Illinois ($74.8M), and Georgia ($68.3M).

Growth In November 2024, the decrease in United States's year-by-year exports to South Africa was explained primarily by an decrease in product exports in Vaccines, blood, antisera, toxins and cultures ($-19.5M or -89.1%), Metal Mountings ($-10.5M or -75.3%), and Machinery Having Individual Functions ($-7.71M or -90.7%). In November 2024, the increase in United States's year-by-year imports from South Africa was explained primarily by an increase in product imports in Cars ($178M or 240%), Ferroalloys ($64.1M or 745%), and Other Precious Metal Products ($20.1M or 2.19k%).

Latest Trade

Time Scale

Year

Quarter

Month

Flow

Exports

Imports

Value

Trade Value

Growth

Growth (%)

Depth

HS2

HS4

HS6

EXPORT GROWTH (November 2023 - November 2024)$-20.3M(-4.09%)

IMPORT GROWTH (November 2023 - November 2024)$91.2M(7.4%)

MAIN EXPORTER (November 2024)Texas$93.9M

This section shows exports and imports data at subnational level for United States. Click any date in the line plot, any subnational region in the geomap or any product to explore the exports or imports behavior of United States over time.

To check South Africa and United States trade dynamics, check the bilateral page.

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Historical Data

Bilateral Trade by Products

Depth

HS2

HS4

HS6

Value

Trade

Growth

Growth (%)

Year

In 2023, United States exported $6.85B to South Africa. The main products exported from United States to South Africa were Crude Petroleum ($424M), Planes, Helicopters, and/or Spacecraft ($369M), and Petroleum Gas ($254M). During the last 5 years the exports of United States to South Africa have increased at an annualized rate of 5.79%, from $5.17B in 2018 to $6.85B in 2023.

In 2018, South Africa exported $13B to United States. The main products exported from South Africa to United States were Platinum ($3.42B), Cars ($1.6B), and Other Precious Metal Products ($1.37B). During the last 5 years the exports of South Africa to United States have increased at an annualized rate of 9.1%, from $8.42B in 2023 to $13B in 2018.

Exports from United States () to South Africa () (2023)

Exports from South Africa () to United States () (2023)

Market Competitiveness

Color

Exports

Export Growth

Section

Year

United States
Top DestinationCanada$269B

South Africa
Top DestinationChina$29.5B

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

In 2023, countries that imported more from United States than South Africa included Canada ($269B), Mexico ($243B), and China ($154B).

In 2023, countries that imported more from South Africa than United States included Mozambique ($6.13B), Botswana ($4.28B), and Zimbabwe ($3.47B).

Difference in imports from South Africa () and United States () (2023)

Comparative Advantage United States - South Africa

Flow

Section

HS2

HS4

Scale

Log

Linear

Year

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

During 2023, United States had a large net trade with South Africa in the exports of Machines ($2.05B), Transportation ($1.33B), and Mineral Products ($1.06B).

During 2018, South Africa had a large net trade with United States in the exports of Precious Metals ($6.82B), Transportation ($1.89B), and Metals ($1.4B).

Potential Exports

Depth

Section

HS2

HS4

View

Top 20

Top 15

Top 10

Sort By

Highest Potential

Most Saturated

Section

Top Product Potential United States South Africa+$281MRefined Petroleum

Top Product Potential South Africa United States+$856MCars

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 United States and South Africa. This means that a dot/product with the flag of United States 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 United States.

Product Space of United States () and South Africa () (2023)

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