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Janet Wilhelm
Engineering News - 16 March 2022 by Tasneem Bulbulia
Engineering News - 7 April 2022 by Terence Creamer
Export Tracker - Q3 2021
South Africa’s merchandise exports have continued on their upward trajectory, although at a slower pace, increasing by 13.1 % in Q3 2021 from Q3 2020, amounting to R460 billion. However, a quarterly analysis for the period under review indicates that exports have marginally declined by 7.8% from Q2 2021. The quarterly decline is likely due to a fall in the mineral prices for ore and platinum. Imports have also increased by 23% in Q3 2021 from Q3 2020, amounting to R359 billion, a 7.7% increase from the previous quarter (Q2 2021). With the value of merchandise exports being higher than imports in the third quarter of 2021, South Africa experienced a trade surplus of R101 billion, although it significantly declined by 39% from the previous quarter. In US dollar terms, merchandise exports increased by 31.9% from Q2 2020, amounting to US$30 billion, while declining by 13% from the second quarter of 2021. In contrast, imports increased by 49.2% year-on-year, amounting to 24.5 billion and rising by 5.9% from Q2 2021.
TIPS says broader, engaged development approaches needed to realise just transition projects
Engineering News - 25 February 2022 by Marleny Arnoldi
Overview of the European Green Deal (Ariane Labat, EU Delegation to South Africa)
Opportunities and risks for South African exporters (Martin Cameron, Trade Advisory)
The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and implications for South African and European Union trade (Lerato Monaisa, TIPS)
The EU’s Green Deal and its implications for South Africa ( Karen Bosman, Wesgro)
Preparing green SMMEs for trade opportunities presented by the European Green Deal (Trudi Hartzenberg, tralac)
Information sheets
Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism
Research report
The European Green Deal: Context, challenges and opportunities for South African SMEs operating in the green economy (TIPS, tralac, Trade Advisory)
Policy Briefs
Sustainable complexity: Managing export regulations in the European Green Deal (Christopher Woood)
European Green Deal: The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and implications for South African and European Union trade (Lerato Monaisa, TIPS)
Media
Press release: We need to throw our green hat into the ring - a call to South African exporters
Background
The European Green Deal (EGD) is a is a set of policy initiatives by the European Commission with the overarching aim of making Europe climate neutral by 2050. These policy initiatives aim to make all sectors of the European Union's economy fit to contribute to the European Union reaching its climate targets by 2030 in a fair, cost-effective and competitive way. The EGD proposes several action plans and initiatives in priority areas, which include energy, land, biodiversity, clean air, sustainable foods and buildings, among others. South African exporters to the European Union will need to adapt to this change, to assure their long-term competitiveness in a changing market. This webinar focuses on the EGD and its potential implications for South African trade with the European Union.
Welcome and introduction
- Elize Hattingh, Sustainable Growth Researcher, Trade & Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS)
Overview of the EDG
- EDG overview - Ariane Labat, EU Delegation to South Africa.
- Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) implications - Lerato Monaisa, TIPS
- Opportunities and Risks for South African exporters - Martin Cameron, Trade Advisory
Panel Discussion: EDG Trade Impacts for South Africa
- Trudi Hartzenberg, tralac
- Karen Bosman, Wesgro
- Melisizwe Tyiso, Nadeli
- Tinashe Kapuya, Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy
Open discussion (Q&A)
About the speakers
Ariane Labat is currently counsellor for climate action, environment and agriculture at the EU Delegation to South Africa, after four years as head of cooperation for the EU Delegation to the Kingdom of Eswatini. Ariane was previously cluster lead mitigation for the EU international negotiation team at the UNFCCC from Cancun to the Paris Agreement; she had further previous assignments as an economist working to unlock sustainable and inclusive growth opportunities in Europe, Latin America and China.
Lerato Valentia Monaisa is an Economist and works in the Sustainable Growth pillar at TIPS. She has a Bachelor of Economics (with a distinction in economics) and Bachelor of Economics Honours (with distinction) from Rhodes University. She has MPhil in Industrial Policy at the University of Johannesburg.
Trudi Hartzenberg is the Executive Director of tralac. She has a special interest in trade-related capacity building. Her research areas include trade policy issues, regional integration, investment, industrial and competition policy.
Martin Cameron is a quantitative economist specialising in quantitative executive decision support modelling, economic impact analysis and engineering management decision support. He has extensive experience in international trade and energy economics.
Tinashe Kapuya is an experienced soft commodities analyst, and agricultural value chain and trade specialist who has worked in this capacity both as a researcher and practitioner in the private sector over the past 10 years. His areas of expertise include agribusiness and value chain development, market and trade analysis, agro-food system analysis, research and policy advocacy. Tinashe was a regular contributor to the Agbiz Weekly Newsletter, GrainSA magazine and FarmBiz Magazine and continues to write for the Landbouweekblad and Business Day, among others.
Karen Bosman works as a Strategic Research and Public Affairs Officer at Wesgro. Areas of experience include international trade and investment law; policy advocacy; export development and international investment promotion and facilitation; strategic communication; legislative and constitutional processes; legislative analysis; regulation of international services trade; regional economic harmonisation; commercial law and litigation. She has a Master’s Degree in International Business and Economic Law from Georgetown University.
Melisizwe Tyiso works as a Researcher at the National Labour and Economic Institute (NALEDI).
About the facilitators
Host: Elize Hattingh is a Sustainable Growth researcher at TIPS. She has been actively involved in promoting the sustainable development agenda for more than 15 years.
Panel convener: Gaylor Montmasson-Clair
Gaylor is a Senior Economist at TIPS which he joined in 2011. He is also a Research Fellow at the Centre for Competition, Regulation and Economic Development (CCRED) at the University of Johannesburg. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Finance and Political Science, and a Master’s degree in International Affairs from the Institut d’Etudes Politiques (Sciences Po) of Grenoble, France.
Event details
Date: Wednesday, 6 April 2022
Expansion of Ukraine war will undermine SA’s economy
Business Day - 14 March 2022 by Neva Makgetla (TIPS Senior Economist)
Electric car ‘grants’ proposed for South Africa
BusinessTech - 11 March 2022
Bilateral or regional trade agreements (RTAs) are essentially preferential in nature and a deviation from the World Trade Organization principle of most-favoured-nation or non-discrimination, as they are intended to benefit signatory countries. However, the agreement could be abused by competitive third-countries that use a member country of the RTA (that has a low external tariff) as a springboard to penetrate the entire regional preferential market. Such a scenario could undermine the industries of other countries within the RTA. To avoid such a scenario, free trade agreements or RTAs use rules of origin (RoO) to determine the national origin of the product and to establish the thresholds for local content or value-added before the product is re-exported.
This Discussion Paper outlines the different types of RoO, provides a brief overview of the approaches to RoO adopted by Africa's Regional Economic Communities, and explores the mainstream academic literature on RoO in the automotive, textiles and apparel sectors. Following this, it highlights current trends in the cotton, textile and apparel production and regional value chains in Africa, arguing that the AfCFTA should adopt a developmental regionalism approach to its RoO negotiations in the cotton, textiles and apparel RVC. In this context, some recommendations for policymakers and negotiators are also provided.
ITNewsAfrica.com - 14 March 2022 by Zintle Nkohla
Read online at ITNewsAfrica.com