South Africa posted a trade surplus of ZAR 36.9 billion in February 2026, sharply higher than the downwardly revised surplus of ZAR 8.5 billion recorded in January. Exports rose by 8.2% month-on-month to ZAR 168.1 billion, driven mainly by stronger shipments of vehicles and transport equipment (+55%), machinery and electronics (+22%), and base metals (+16%). By destination, overseas sales increased notably to Oceania (+53.4%), the Americas (+33.1%), and Africa (+17.5%), while edging lower to Asia (-0.4%).
In contrast, imports declined by 10.7% to a four-year low of ZAR 131.2 billion, reflecting broad-based weaknesses across major product groups. Inbound purchases fell markedly for vehicles and transport equipment (-2.5%), base metals (-18%), machinery and electronics (-14%), chemical products (-10%), and original equipment components (-9%). By origin, imports dropped most steeply from the Americas (-22.5%), Europe (-18.5%), and Oceania (-17.3%), with smaller decreases from Asia (-5.9%) and Africa (-4.7%).
