South African exports to the US under the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act this year will be substantially higher than 2002, mainly due to strong growth in vehicle deliveries.
South African exports to the US under the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) this year will be substantially higher than 2002, mainly due to strong growth in vehicle deliveries.
Exports to the US for the first five months of this year were 36 per cent higher than in the corresponding period last year, Henry Flint, senior economist at Standard Bank, said this week.
“One of the biggest growth areas for SA this year has been in vehicles, mainly BMWs, which rose 39 per cent,” said Flint. BMW South Africa, which is based in Rosslyn, currently exports left-hand drive 3 Series models to the US.
The solid growth also suggests that the country is maintaining a brisk pace in taking advantage of the US act. Exports under Agoa last year were 45 per cent higher than exports in 2001.
South Africa’s Agoa exports during the first five months of the year totalled R4,7 billion, up from R3,3 billion over the corresponding period last year, Flint said.
“With US imports rising and increasing signs of recovery in the US economy, prospects for exports for the rest of the year look fairly good,” he added.
