South Africa’s trade ministry said Trade Minister Parks Tau is travelling to China to sign the agreement, which is expected to grant South African exports preferential access to the Chinese market while also attracting new Chinese investment.

“This trip comes at a time when South Africa is pursuing an objective of market diversification and export growth,” the ministry said, without disclosing which sectors would benefit.

China is already South Africa’s largest single-country trading partner, overtaking the European Union in 2023. South African exports to China are dominated by minerals and agricultural products, sectors that could gain significantly from reduced tariffs in the world’s second-largest economy.The move comes against the backdrop of worsening trade relations with the United States, South Africa’s second-largest trading partner by country.

US–South Africa ties have come under strain over the past year amid mounting diplomatic, trade, and geopolitical tensions.

US–South Africa ties have come under strain over the past year amid mounting diplomatic, trade, and geopolitical tensions.

In August last year, Washington imposed 30% tariffs on some South African products, raising concerns within Pretoria that thousands of jobs could be at risk.

Tensions between South Africa and President Donald Trump’s administration have escalated over the past year across diplomatic, trade, and geopolitical sectors, disrupting what was once a stable transatlantic relationship.

Pretoria has since sought to renegotiate trade terms with Washington, but progress has been uncertain, fuelling fears over South Africa’s continued preferential access to US markets and its future standing under US-backed trade frameworks.

Against this backdrop, deepening trade ties with China reflects a broader recalibration of South Africa’s foreign economic policy toward non-Western partners, including China, the broader BRICS bloc, and parts of the Global South.

In the long run, duty-free access to China could help South Africa reduce over-reliance on Western markets, stabilise export revenues, and attract investment into manufacturing and value-added sectors.

While uncertainty remains over whether the US will fully reintegrate South Africa into its preferred trade arrangements, Pretoria appears increasingly determined to diversify its options—and reduce vulnerability to unilateral trade shocks.