South Africa records an agricultural trade surplus of US$1.4 billion in Q1 2021

Published 2021년 5월 31일

Tridge summary

South Africa's agricultural sector has seen a strong start to 2021, with increased crop yields and grazing veld, leading to potential record exports. The first quarter of 2021 saw a 28% increase in agricultural exports, reaching $2,9 billion, and a trade surplus of $1,4 billion. The country is on track to surpass 2020's export earnings of $10,2 billion, with expectations of larger yields in major crops and in the wine and citrus industries. However, logistical challenges need to be addressed to improve export efficiency. The country also imports agricultural products like wheat, rice, and palm oil, with projections showing an increase in rice imports and a decrease in wheat imports due to a large domestic harvest.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

The South African agricultural sector has had a good start to 2021, with favourable rainfall supporting crop yields and grazing veld for the livestock industry. This is a second consecutive season of strong performance for the sector after 2020 also saw bumper harvests on various crops and subsequently the second-largest export earnings on record of US$10,2 billion. With 2021 set to present even larger yields than 2020 for major field crops, horticulture and wine industry, we believe that exports could surpass 2020 levels. In the first quarter of 2021, agricultural exports amounted to US$2,9 billion, which is a 28% year-on-year (y/y) increase. The size of the increase compared with last year is partly because of base effects as the first quarter of 2020 was affected by the Covid-19 related disruptions to global supply chains, but the growth also reflects rising export performance for various products. In the first quarter of this year, the top exportable products were fresh ...

Source: Farmingportal