The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) has warned that threats to lose lucrative trade deals are doing considerable damage to the South African economy.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the SACCI said that, following calls in the United States to exclude South Africa from the list of countries benefiting from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), “the government is called upon to allay speculation and remove lingering uncertainties”.
The Chamber added that its business confidence index fell to 106.9 in May from 107.1 a month earlier, the lowest level since May 2022, when global headwinds exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine conflict fuelled inflation and capital outflows.
Against this backdrop, the lobby group noted that “with the global economy slowly recovering, it is essential that greater attention is paid to putting South Africa back on a trajectory that attracts foreign investment and expands trade relations”.
Relations between South Africa and the United States have become strained in recent months. Last May, the US ambassador to Pretoria, Reuben Brigety, stated that his country was convinced that “arms and munitions were loaded” at the beginning of December 2022 on board a Russian cargo ship moored near Cape Town, despite South Africa’s declared neutrality in the conflict.
AGOA gives duty-free access to 25% of South African exports to the United States, South Africa’s second-largest trading partner after China.