DA Says U.S. Tariffs Tied to Race Policies, Warns of Long-Term Trade Impact
Evident Makatwane 
Image Credit: Democratic Alliance
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has warned that the 30% tariff now applied to the country’s exports to the United States is unlikely to be lifted without changes to domestic race-based economic policies.
The steep tariff, introduced under U.S. President Donald Trump, came after months of unsuccessful trade negotiations between Pretoria and Washington. The failure to reach a deal before the deadline now leaves South African goods facing the highest U.S. tariff rate in sub-Saharan Africa, placing significant pressure on export-dependent sectors such as agriculture and manufacturing.
DA Leader Links Tariff to Broader Political Issues
Speaking to Reuters, DA leader and current Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen said the impasse extends beyond trade disagreements.
“It is very clear that while we’ve been negotiating on a trade track, the issues with the Trump administration are deeper than that,” Steenhuisen said. “These cover things like expropriation without compensation, certain labour laws, and the country’s racial legislation.”
Steenhuisen also noted that South Africa’s alignment with BRICS, the economic bloc comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa was a sticking point for Washington. The grouping, which positions itself as a counterweight to U.S. economic dominance, has strengthened ties among its members in recent years, including expanding cooperation on trade, energy, and finance.
Affirmative Action Under Scrutiny
At the heart of the dispute is South Africa’s Broad-based Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) Act and related policies, designed to redress the racial inequalities entrenched during apartheid. The African National Congress (ANC), the dominant coalition partner, has repeatedly defended BEE as a non-negotiable policy aimed at closing the persistent wealth gap between white and Black South Africans.
While the DA has long called for replacing race-based measures with “non-racial” policies that focus on reducing bureaucracy and stimulating job creation, Steenhuisen acknowledged that any changes to such legislation would require lengthy parliamentary debate and could not be implemented simply to appease Washington.
Nonetheless, he suggested that signalling a willingness to review certain policies could help ease tensions:
“My worry is that we’re going to continue to negotiate on tariffs and trade… and the 30% is going to remain,” he said.
ANC Stands Firm
The ANC has dismissed claims that its land reform policies, including the Expropriation Act signed earlier this year, pose a threat to property rights. The law allows for the rare expropriation of land for redistribution without compensation but has yet to be applied. Government officials say it is a targeted tool to address historical land ownership disparities and not a broad nationalization program.
Economic Stakes High
With agriculture among the sectors most severely affected by the tariffs, the fallout could have a direct impact on food exports, rural jobs, and foreign exchange earnings. As agriculture minister, Steenhuisen faces the dual challenge of managing domestic policy differences while seeking ways to protect farmers and agribusinesses from further economic strain.
For now, both sides appear far from resolving the dispute, with South Africa prioritizing sovereignty over domestic policy decisions, and the U.S. linking trade relief to deeper political and economic reforms.
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