From afar, the China-South Africa trade relationship looks amazing. Last year, the two countries sold more than $52 billion worth of goods to one another — mostly raw materials from South Africa and finished goods from China.

But when you look at the figures more closely, some real problems become evident. While trade volumes between the two countries have grown exponentially over the past 20 years, so has South Africa's trade deficit with China, which reached almost $10 billion last year.

Marvellous Ngundu, a research consultant at the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria, explored the problem in a recently published paper and joins Eric & Cobus to discuss what can be done to balance out this "active, yet highly unequal" trading relationship.

• Institute for Security Studies: South Africa’s trade deficit dilemma with China by Marvellous Ngundu
• Bloomberg: A New ‘China Shock’ Is Destroying Jobs Around the World by Katia Dmitrieva, Philip Heijmans, and Prima Wirayani

X: @christiangeraud I @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @stadenesque

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social

FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH AND ARABIC: Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine Arabic: عربي: www.alsin-alsharqalawsat.com | @SinSharqAwsat

JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CGSP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth