As a trade war between the US and China escalates, South Africa is prepared to defend itself by hiking its own tariffs, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said this week. The international trade tiff resulting in raised tariffs on over 800 products imported into the US affects South Africa's duty-free access benefits under the African Growth and Opportunity Act. This will be on the discussion table when Davies attends the Agoa Forum in Washington, DC in three weeks. "Our view is that we've become collateral damage in a dispute which is not of our making," Davies told Business Times on Thursday. "We are concerned about the instability that's emerged, the fact that the rules of the global trading system are under pressure because these are now unilateral measures. I think the issues are going to be that we're going into a very different ball game in global trade." South Africa at this stage was unlikely to alter its trade policy but the situation was being closely monitored. Where...
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