By Rachel Mohamed
Early reports indicate that South Africa will need to explore alternative markets for its critical mineral exports following the imposition of steep tariffs by the United States, which will take effect on August 7. This was stated by Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe earlier this week.
In an interview with VOC News, Senior Researcher, Department of Political Science at the University of Pretoria, and CEO of the Frontline Group, Dr. Jason Musyok, commented that the tariffs are expected to rise further. In a previous interview, he had predicted that while the South African government has attempted to negotiate against the proposed 30% tariff increase, details of their counterproposal remain unclear, and the US government has yet to respond.
“Interestingly, this situation does not apply to Platinum Group Metals (PGMs), for which the US is the largest export market for South Africa. However, when considering the broader category of critical minerals, including iron ore and steel, China emerges as the largest market overall.”
Dr. Musyoka also noted that “the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) is being dismantled, which is expected to conclude by the end of September.”
Listen to the full interview:
VOC News
Photo: Pixabay
