US President Donald Trump's tariffs on South Africa could cause about 100,000 job losses, with the agriculture and automotive sectors hardest hit, Reserve Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago said on Wednesday.
Kganyago told radio station 702 the impact of the 30% tariff, which Africa's biggest economy faces from August 1, could cause significant damage to specific industries.
“The impact in agriculture could be devastating because agriculture employs a lot of low-skilled workers and here the impact is on citrus, table grapes and wines.”
Statistics showing South African car exports to the US slumped more than 80% in the wake of import tariffs imposed on cars by the Trump administration in April were concerning.
“If we do not find alternative measures the impact on jobs could be about 100,000, so that is what we face,” the governor said.
South Africa has one of the highest unemployment rates in the world, with the official rate at 32.9% in the first quarter of this year and an expanded definition at 43.1%.
Farmer groups have also warned of the adverse impact of the tariffs on producers of citrus, macadamia nuts, grapes, wine, fruit juices and ostrich leather.
In the citrus sector, the tariffs have put 35,000 jobs in jeopardy and threaten to devastate towns such as Citrusdal in the Western Cape that are heavily dependent on exports to the US.
Reuters
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