South Africa reduces wheat import tariff
South Africa on Sept. 8 lowered its wheat import tariff to R379.34 per tonne, down 60% from the previous tariff of R947.20 per tonne, according to a Sept. 19 report from the Foreign Agricultural Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The new tariff, which was triggered on July 11 but published on Sept. 8, would be at the lowest level since February 2015, the agency said.
Domestic cement sales grew 4.6% in the third quarter
Domestic cement sales grew 4.6% in the third quarter of last year after contracting in the first two quarters, though sales were on track to come in lower than in 2013.
Thousands of paint industry jobs at risk
15 Sep 2017 Business Report, 15 September 2017 By Roy Cokayne JOHANNESBURG – Thousands of jobs and the future existence of South African based paint manufacturers are at risk because of a government decision to negotiate the abolition of Chapter 39 import duties, specifically resins, from the East African Community (EAC) and Egypt. The abolition […]
The Battle over Safeguards on Poultry Imports from the EU continues
On 28 August 2017, South Africa’s Association of Meat Importers and Exporters (AMIE) announced that it has instituted a legal challenge against the South African Poultry Association (SAPA) and the South African Minister of Trade and Industry with regard to an ongoing safeguard investigation on bone-in chicken imported from the European Union (EU).
No safeguarding conspiracy between government and ArcelorMittal
Gerhard Papenfus — CEO of the National Employers’ Association of SA (Neasa) — really needs to be called out on his piece, ArcelorMittal has benefit of safeguards despite making inferior steel at times (BD Live, August 15 2017).
Industrial base growth will stimulate provinces steel industry
Growing the Eastern Cape industrial base will assist in stimulating growth in the struggling steel industry, says the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC).
ITAC urged to remove increased duty on stainless steel fasteners
In what it believes to be an ‘oversight’, Cape Town-based fastener supplier Fastenright is appealing for the removal of the customs duty that was implemented on stainless steel fasteners on April 1.
Why is the government protecting foreign-owned ArcelorMittal SA?
In a surprise move, the government has notified the World Trade Organisation that it intends to introduce a 12% safeguard duty on top of the existing 10% customs duty on imported, hot-rolled steel.
Delay in signing import tariff changes may hurt wheat millers
Uncertainty is a terrible thing. If you are a wheat farmer or miller, it is something you have probably come to live with. Not because of the unpredictability of the weather or the volatile rand, or even the everpresent land or labour issues, but because the finance minister is too busy to sign and gazette the changes to the variable wheat import tariff.
LETTER: Makgetla is wrong about food prices and tariff formulation
The issue of rising food prices has been at the core of policy discourse for some time, particularly, over the past year when the country experienced a perfect storm of a severe drought, and a volatile and depreciating rand.