'There's room for engagement and review on US tarrifs' - Ntshavheni

CAPE TOWN - Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, said there’s always room for engagement with the United States (US) on the new tariffs that came into effect on Thursday.

She said the 30% tariffs against South Africa come into effect with the provisions that the tariffs will be reviewed as soon as the two countries reach an agreement, or a framework deal that benefits both countries.

Ntshavheni was addressing a post-Cabinet briefing on Thursday, saying the Cabinet affirmed the government’s commitment to finding solutions on the tariffs through negotiations.

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Ntshavheni said President Cyril Ramaphosa has already reached out to US President Donald Trump as part of bolstering South Africa’s negotiation efforts on the trade agreements.

She said while South Africa and several other countries face tariffs of up to 30% on a range of products, the door is still open for negotiations.

"The principle is that the room for engagement is there, and the president continues to engage."

She said Cabinet has also not ruled out a possible review of the tariffs that could result in the loss of up to 30,000 local jobs.

"Otherwise, if there was no prospect for review there would not be a need for a continuous engagement. So, we continue to engage because there’s always prospect for review."

She said in the meantime, the government will offer support to affected local industries through a Localisation Support Fund (LSF) as well as an export and competitiveness support programme.

DIPLOMACY IS A PROCESS - RAMAPHOSA

Meanwhile, President Cyril Ramaphosa has called Trump to reaffirm and accelerate stable trade relations between the two countries.

The Presidency said efforts are underway to come up with a new trade framework with the US.

Spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said the efforts will also address the impact of the newly imposed tariff, which will make it more expensive for countries to export to the US.

“Diplomacy is not a sprint or event, it’s a process. One would have to appreciate a number of complex layers that we have to kind off work through. You have a tariff sort of process that the US has unilaterally engaged in and it affects a number of countries, even those countries considered US allies, then you have a process where we are seeking to come up with a new trade framework between the two countries.”

Moreover, the Presidency noted concern that some political parties are trying to score what it labelled cheap political points amid sensitive trade negotiations with the US.

This follows comment from several parties in the government supporting the idea of letting go of some transformation policies, including Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment. 

Recently, Trump criticised the country’s Expropriation Act that was signed into law, claiming the government is taking land from white Afrikaner farmers.

Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said there is nothing wrong with the policies, and they have never stopped fair trade between South Africa and other countries.

“Theres nothing wrong with those policies, we've traded with the US quite positively for a number of years, with these policies in place, traded with many other countries in Europe and Asia and none of them have raised an issue with our transformative policies. Therefore, what we would like to see is all South African's rallying behind the government in this regard, instead of pulling in different directions when we are dealing on delicate matters with a foreign state party.”