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Trade between Saudi Arabia and South Africa

In 2024, Saudi Arabia exported $2.5 billion to South Africa and imported $847 million. Saudi Arabia ran a surplus of $1.6 billion with South Africa, compared with a surplus of $2.9 billion in 2019. South Africa was Saudi Arabia’s 30th largest trading partner (0.6% of its trade), and Saudi Arabia was South Africa’s 19th (1%).

Summary

Saudi Arabia → South Africa
$2.5billion
South Africa → Saudi Arabia
$847million
Saudi Arabia’s balance
$1.6billion

Balance

Saudi Arabia’s trade balance with South Africa

Trade between Saudi Arabia and South Africa grew 10.4-fold since 1995

USD billions (current). Saudi Arabia’s exports and imports; bars: its balance (green surplus, red deficit).

  • Exports 2.5
  • Imports 0.8
  • Balance +1.6

Source: CEPII BACI

Show the numbers
YearExportsImportsTrade balance
1995$214 million$105 million$108 million
1996$233 million$236 million-$3 million
1997$20 million$157 million-$137 million
1998$69 million$497 million-$428 million
1999$987 million$459 million$527 million
2000$2 billion$357 million$1.7 billion
2001$1.8 billion$277 million$1.5 billion
2002$1.3 billion$253 million$1.1 billion
2003$2 billion$223 million$1.8 billion
2004$2.7 billion$479 million$2.2 billion
2005$3.1 billion$542 million$2.5 billion
2006$3.6 billion$515 million$3.1 billion
2007$3.6 billion$642 million$3 billion
2008$5.6 billion$685 million$4.9 billion
2009$3.2 billion$501 million$2.7 billion
2010$3.3 billion$521 million$2.7 billion
2011$4.5 billion$527 million$4 billion
2012$8 billion$492 million$7.5 billion
2013$8.1 billion$755 million$7.4 billion
2014$7.2 billion$1.1 billion$6.1 billion
2015$2.7 billion$1.2 billion$1.5 billion
2016$2.9 billion$724 million$2.2 billion
2017$3.9 billion$864 million$3 billion
2018$5.4 billion$702 million$4.7 billion
2019$3.7 billion$832 million$2.9 billion
2020$2.7 billion$794 million$1.9 billion
2021$4.1 billion$876 million$3.2 billion
2022$4.5 billion$1.2 billion$3.3 billion
2023$3.1 billion$722 million$2.4 billion
2024$2.5 billion$847 million$1.6 billion

What they sell each other

What Saudi Arabia sells to South Africa

The top 10 headings in 2024, with their share of the total.

  1. Refined petroleum$990 million · 39.8%
    1.5 million tonnes · Saudi Arabia’s destinations
  2. Crude petroleum$874 million · 35.2%
    1.5 million tonnes · Saudi Arabia’s destinations
  3. Polyethylene$155 million · 6.2%
    150 thousand tonnes · Saudi Arabia’s destinations
  4. Nitrogen fertilizers$106 million · 4.3%
    297 thousand tonnes
  5. Alcohols$48 million · 1.9%
    94 thousand tonnes
  6. Mixed alkylbenzenes$46 million · 1.8%
    30 thousand tonnes
  7. Cyclic hydrocarbons$37 million · 1.5%
    35 thousand tonnes
  8. Mixed fertilizers$25 million · 1%
    42 thousand tonnes
  9. Acrylic acid and other unsaturated acids$22 million · 0.89%
    10 thousand tonnes
  10. Polypropylene$17 million · 0.7%
    16 thousand tonnes · Saudi Arabia’s destinations

What South Africa sells to Saudi Arabia

The top 10 headings in 2024, with their share of the total.

  1. Gold$276 million · 32.6%
    4 tonnes · South Africa’s destinations
  2. Citrus fruit$82 million · 9.7%
    116 thousand tonnes · South Africa’s destinations
  3. Trucks$60 million · 7.1%
    5 thousand tonnes · South Africa’s destinations
  4. Open-chain hydrocarbons$54 million · 6.4%
    30 thousand tonnes
  5. Cars$48 million · 5.6%
    2 thousand tonnes · South Africa’s destinations
  6. Apples and pears$25 million · 3%
    24 thousand tonnes
  7. Other fresh fruit (berries, kiwi)$24 million · 2.8%
    3 thousand tonnes
  8. Manganese ore$23 million · 2.7%
    168 thousand tonnes · South Africa’s destinations
  9. Forage (alfalfa and hay)$17 million · 2%
    48 thousand tonnes
  10. Grapes$14 million · 1.6%
    7 thousand tonnes

How it travels

Estimated sea route from Jeddah to Durban.

The estimated sea route between Jeddah and Durban is 4,100 nautical miles (7,593 km) long: ≈ 9.5–12 days at sea (at 18 and 14 knots).

Passages it crosses: Bab-el-Mandeb Strait.

Sailing estimate without port calls, waiting or transshipment; not a schedule. One main reference port per country: in large countries it does not represent all of its ports.

Split by transport mode

  1. Sea$3 billion · 90.3%
  2. Air$322 million · 9.7%

Mode estimated from value per kilo and geography; both directions together.

How much each matters to the other

South Africa was Saudi Arabia’s 30th largest trading partner (0.6% of its trade), and Saudi Arabia was South Africa’s 19th (1%).

South Africa in Saudi Arabia’s trade
0.6%
South Africa’s rank among Saudi Arabia’s partners
30th
Saudi Arabia in South Africa’s trade
1.3%
Saudi Arabia’s rank among South Africa’s partners
19th

Compare with

Other partners of Saudi Arabia

Other partners of South Africa

Sources and methodology

Sources and licenses

Methodology

Goods trade from CEPII BACI (BACI_HS92_V202601), in current US dollars, with exports and imports reconciled between countries. The transport mode is our own estimate based on value per kilo and geography. The sea route comes from our own network derived from World Bank shipping density (not from nautical charts), between one main reference port per country (World Port Index); days are the distance at 14 and 18 knots, without port calls or waiting. Data up to 2024.