Import Tracker - Q1 2023

South Africa’s first quarter trade balance declined to a deficit for the first time since the first quarter of 2019, driven in part by a decline in exports, while imports remained relatively high, even with a R5 billion quarter-on-quarter decline. In all, exports declined by R7 billion to R483 billion in the year to the first quarter of 2023, while imports increased by some R63 billion to R488 billion during the same period.