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Import duties changed on steel bars, articulated dump trucks, windscreens, stemming plugs, automatic slack adjusters, onion powder and electric conductors
On 16 August 2024, a wave of long-overdue ITAC investigations was finalised. This development brings much-needed relief to applicants and respondents who have been awaiting outcomes on their tariff applications for a substantial amount of time.…
Agricultural safeguard duties can now be imposed without an investigation under the trade agreement with the EU and the UK
ITAC has published guidelines explaining how agricultural safeguard duties on certain products from the EU and the UK will be implemented. Pay attention here, because there is no investigation preceding the duties. Because of the sensitivity…
Application for an increase of duty on solar panel tracker; Application for a temporary rebate on stainless steel tubes, pipes and hollow profiles
Duty increase on single-axis solar panel tracker Lumax Energy (Pty) Ltd has applied to increase the general rate of customs duty on “Complete Single-Axis Tracker”, classifiable under tariff subheading 8479.89 from duty-free to the WTO bound…
Significant increase in customs duties on lead-acid batteries
On 19 July 2024, SARS increased the customs duties on lead-acid batteries used to start piston engines, from 15% to 30%, cleared under tariff subheadings 8507.10.91 and 8507.10.99. According to ITAC, the SACU industry has suffered…
The new Public Procurement Act will have far-reaching implications for how designation works. At last.
The President found his ‘lost pen’, bringing the Public Procurement Act into operation: the “designation” of government tenders for local production and content is now back, but in a better form than before. President Cyril Ramaphosa…
Decrease in sugar customs duties
On 19 July 2024, ITAC published a gazette on the reduction of customs duties on sugar from 140.91c/kg to 109.36c/kg. The newly published duty amendments are as follows: For more information, please contact us at info@xagta.com
Increase in wheat import duties
On 19 July 2024, ITAC issued a gazette targeting tariff subheadings for wheat and wheat flour (1001.91, 1001.99, 1101.00.10 to 1101.00.90) by increasing the associated customs duties. To ensure stable wheat prices, the import duty acts…
The importance of non-alignment if (when?) Trump wins the November 2024 elections
It’s not comforting that American politics is starting to feel like KZN, after Thomas Matthew Crooks shot Donald Trump though the ear yesterday. He also killed a member of the crowd and injured another before being…
Provisional duty imposed on hot rolled steel products imported into South Africa
After notifying the World Trade Organization (WTO) of its intention to impose a 9% duty on 25 July this year, South Africa has now officially implemented a provisional safeguard duty on hot-rolled steel products imported into…
Importing solar panels will become more expensive as the import duties rise to 10%
Last Friday the import duties on solar panels rose from zero to 10%. Here is what happened and why I think this decision is a poor one. On 17 April 2017, ARTSolar, a local solar panel…
Proposed Amendments on the APDP Phase 2 Program; Draft Block Exemption for Ports and Rail
Proposed Amendment to Include Electric Vehicles (EVs) in APDP Phase 2 Program On 19 June 2024, ITAC published an amendment to include Electric Vehicles (EVs) and their components within the APDP Phase 2 program. The program…
Warming Up and Cooling Down: Long Awaited Customs Duty Updates on Solar Panels and Air Conditioners
Solar Panels: A (very) long-awaited decision After investigating for 5 years and 3 months (1 918 days), ITAC & DTIC have finally released its findings in Report 613, leading to a 10% increase in customs duties…
Expiry of Anti-Dumping Duties on PET from China
On 21 June 2024, the ITAC published a notice on anti-dumping duties on various PET imports from China, set to expire in 2025. As the anti-dumping regulations stipulate, duties shall be terminated on a date no…
Sunset Review and Alleged Circumvention on Glass Products
Sunset review on the anti-dumping duty on unframed glass mirrors On 21 June 2024, ITAC published a final determination on the anti-dumping duty on unframed glass mirrors (2mm < thickness < 6mm), tariff subheading 7009.91 imported…
Anti-dumping duties up for review in 2025
Anti-dumping duties are imposed for five years and will terminate on a date not later than five years from the date of imposition. A review has to be initiated to ensure that the duties stay in…
Just in! Imminent Provisional Duty on Hot-Rolled Steel Products
A significant development is underway regarding the provisional safeguard duty on hot-rolled steel products. South Africa has notified the World Trade Organization (WTO) of its intention to impose a 9% duty, effective from tomorrow, June 28,…
A “new dawn” of industrial policy in South Africa? The proposed ‘designation’ framework under the Public Procurement Bill sent to the President for assent
If the President signs the new Public Procurement Bill, we may finally, we may see the light of an industrial policy which works in South Africa. Designation scores a few notable victories here and we’re going…
The industrial policy Master’s class ends (or does it?)
The Danish political economist, Torben Iversen, notes that “[l]abour-intensive, low-productivity jobs do not thrive in the context of high social protection and intensive labour-market regulation, and without international trade countries cannot specialise in high value-added services.…
Duty increase application on conical steel drums
Peninsula Drums brought an application to increase the general rate of customs duty of “conical steel drums, of steel, of a capacity of 210 li or more but not exceeding 234 li”, cleared under tariff subheading…
Rebate application on palm oils and their fractions
On May 24, 2024, ITAC published a rebate application on palm oils and their fractions, classified under tariff subheadings 1516.20.90 & 1511.90.90, explicitly used in the manufacturing of soaps and organic surface-active products (bars, cakes, molded…
Trade Brief 5: Medical masterplan and American duties on China
President Ramaphosa signed the National Health Insurance Bill into law this week, creating a massive healthcare monopsony (like a monopoly, but where there is one buyer instead of one seller), run by the state. If you…
South Africa’s WTO disputes against EU measures on citrus: throwing stones in a glass house
After poultry, citrus is South Africa’s largest agricultural industry, employing more than 140,000 people and annually earning South Africa R30 billion in export revenue. Of this, 37% is exported to the EU, by far our most…
The clothing manufacturing sector is shedding jobs not creating them
In very exciting news this week Minister Patel announced that “[t]he master plan for the clothing, textile, footwear and leather (CTFL) industry had turned around the industry’s fortunes and created [20 000] jobs since the plan’s…
ITAC Update: Temporary rebate for roller bearing components
On 26 April 2024, SARS created a temporary rebate for certain outer rings of journal roller bearings, by the insertion of rebate item 460.15/8482.99.17/01.08 into the tariff book, providing conditional duty relief for imports. These outer…
Cosatu, stop shouting and give a useful recommendation to reduce unemployment
I’m interested in seeing how business responds to the Democratic Alliance’s economic plan. I hope it’s a little more measured than the shallow response from Matthew Parks, Cosatu’s parliamentary coordinator and acting national spokesperson. Let’s for…
Initiation of anti-dumping sunset review on garden picks, spades and shovels, rakes, and forks
On 19 April 2024, ITAC initiated the sunset review of the anti-dumping duties on garden picks, spades and shovels, rakes and forks originating in or imported from the People’s Republic of China. In June 2023, ITAC…
Stop focusing on making electric vehicles and focus on selling them
We are not going to manufacture electric vehicles (EVs), or their components, in South Africa in the next decade, even if the Electric Vehicles White Paper promises the first electric cars by 2026. This has interesting…
Biden-Harris Administration Takes Historic Steps to Safeguard U.S. Steel and Shipbuilding Industries
On Wednesday 17 April 2024, President Biden called on the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), to triple the tariff rate on Chinese steel and aluminium imports. The current average tariff on Chinese imports under Section 301, on…
Anti-dumping duties on frozen bone-In chicken portions from the United States extended for another 5 years
The anti-dumping duties on frozen bone-in chicken portions from the USA remains unchanged at R9.40 per kg for another five years. On November 9, 2022, the Commission initiated this sunset review of the anti-dumping duties on…
Update to tariff determination rules
On 11 April 2024, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) announced that it had inserted Rule 4(3D) of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 relating to the publication of tariff determinations. The updated rule has been…