South Africa trade slips into deficit as exports weaken amid xenophobic backlash - Blueprint Newspapers Limited
Spread the wordSouth Africa recorded a preliminary trade deficit of R1. 8 billion in May as exports declined and imports increased, according to the latest preliminary trade statistics released by the South. . .
Spread the wordSouth Africa recorded a preliminary trade deficit of R1. 8 billion in May as exports declined and imports increased, according to the latest preliminary trade statistics released by the South African Revenue Service (SARS). Thos is coming at a time where xenophobic activities seem to weighing down on South Africa. Analysts say South Africa is actively facing severe economic backlash from anti-migrant campaigns and “foreigner must go” protests. These actions disrupt vital cross-border trade, choke supply chains, and cause heavy financial losses for South African businesses that rely heavily on regional trade and migrant labour. A fresh wave of deadly xenophobic violence and anti-immigrant protests in South Africa targeting African foreign nationals, including Nigerians, has escalated into a major diplomatic crisis between the two countries. Meanwhile, the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics published its Foreign Trade in Goods Statistics for forst quarter of 2026 as part of its routine quarterly releases. The figures for South Africa inside it are anything but routine, given current events. According to NBS data, Nigeria imported N155. 26 billion from South Africa and exported N887. 13 billion to South Africa between January and March 2026. Spread the wordSouth Africaxenophobic attacks