Where China ranks among a country’s import partners in South Africa
South Africa: Where China ranks among a country’s import partners was 1 rank in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
1 rank
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
124th
of 206 countries
All-time high
8 rank
in 1999
All-time low
1 rank
in 2009
Years of data
28
1998–2025
Where China ranks among a country’s import partners in South Africa, 1998–2025
Source: International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in rank.
Analysis
In 2025, where china ranks among a country’s import partners in South Africa stood at 1 rank. That is the lowest value across all 28 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, where china ranks among a country’s import partners in South Africa peaked at 8 rank in 1999 and was at its lowest, 1 rank, in 2009.
That places South Africa 124th out of 206 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Where China ranks among a country’s import partners in South Africa, year by year
| Year | rank | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 7 rank | — |
| 1999 | 8 rank | +14.3% |
| 2000 | 8 rank | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 6 rank | -25.0% |
| 2002 | 5 rank | -16.7% |
| 2003 | 5 rank | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 3 rank | -40.0% |
| 2005 | 2 rank | -33.3% |
| 2006 | 2 rank | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 2 rank | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 2 rank | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 1 rank | -50.0% |
| 2010 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 1 rank | +0.0% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 1 rank is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 2 rank, 50% of the median. (57 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 1 rank is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1 rank, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 7.5 rank | 7 rank | 8 rank | 2 |
| 2000s | 3.6 rank | 1 rank | 8 rank | 10 |
| 2010s | 1 rank | 1 rank | 1 rank | 10 |
| 2020s | 1 rank | 1 rank | 1 rank | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 124 Algeria 1 rank compare
- 124 Angola 1 rank compare
- 124 Australia 1 rank compare
- 124 Azerbaijan 1 rank compare
- 124 Bahrain 1 rank compare
- 124 Bangladesh 1 rank compare
- 124 Bolivia 1 rank compare
- 124 Brazil 1 rank compare
- 124 Burkina Faso 1 rank compare
- 124 Cambodia 1 rank compare
- 124 Cameroon 1 rank compare
- 124 Central African Republic 1 rank compare
- 124 Chad 1 rank compare
- 124 Chile 1 rank compare
- 124 Colombia 1 rank compare
- 124 Congo 1 rank compare
- 124 Cote d'Ivoire 1 rank compare
- 124 Cuba 1 rank compare
- 124 Democratic Republic of Congo 1 rank compare
- 124 Djibouti 1 rank compare
- 124 Egypt 1 rank compare
- 124 Eritrea 1 rank compare
- 124 Ethiopia 1 rank compare
- 124 Ghana 1 rank compare
- 124 Guinea 1 rank compare
- 124 Hong Kong 1 rank compare
- 124 Iceland 1 rank compare
- 124 India 1 rank compare
- 124 Indonesia 1 rank compare
- 124 Iraq 1 rank compare
- 124 Israel 1 rank compare
- 124 Japan 1 rank compare
- 124 Jordan 1 rank compare
- 124 Kenya 1 rank compare
- 124 Kiribati 1 rank compare
- 124 Kuwait 1 rank compare
- 124 Kyrgyzstan 1 rank compare
- 124 Lebanon 1 rank compare
- 124 Libya 1 rank compare
- 124 Macao 1 rank compare
- 124 Madagascar 1 rank compare
- 124 Malaysia 1 rank compare
- 124 Mali 1 rank compare
- 124 Marshall Islands 1 rank compare
- 124 Mauritius 1 rank compare
- 124 Mongolia 1 rank compare
- 124 Myanmar 1 rank compare
- 124 Nauru 1 rank compare
- 124 Netherlands 1 rank compare
- 124 New Zealand 1 rank compare
- 124 Niger 1 rank compare
- 124 Nigeria 1 rank compare
- 124 North Korea 1 rank compare
- 124 Norway 1 rank compare
- 124 Pakistan 1 rank compare
- 124 Paraguay 1 rank compare
- 124 Peru 1 rank compare
- 124 Philippines 1 rank compare
- 124 Qatar 1 rank compare
- 124 Russia 1 rank compare
- 124 Rwanda 1 rank compare
- 124 Saudi Arabia 1 rank compare
- 124 Senegal 1 rank compare
- 124 Serbia 1 rank compare
- 124 Sierra Leone 1 rank compare
- 124 Solomon Islands 1 rank compare
- 124 Somalia 1 rank compare
- 124 South Korea 1 rank compare
- 124 Sri Lanka 1 rank compare
- 124 Syria 1 rank compare
- 124 Tanzania 1 rank compare
- 124 Thailand 1 rank compare
- 124 Togo 1 rank compare
- 124 Turkey 1 rank compare
- 124 Turkmenistan 1 rank compare
- 124 Uganda 1 rank compare
- 124 Ukraine 1 rank compare
- 124 United Arab Emirates 1 rank compare
- 124 Uruguay 1 rank compare
- 124 Uzbekistan 1 rank compare
- 124 Venezuela 1 rank compare
- 124 Vietnam 1 rank compare
More economy & growth data for South Africa
- Real gdp growth, annual growth rate 108.41 % change on previous year (2025)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 0.4836 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 1.4 Percent per annum (2029)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, annual growth rate 6.87 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0145 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per capita 95.75 units per person (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, annual growth rate 1.77 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0106 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per capita 69.91 units per person (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, annual growth rate -28.9 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is where china ranks among a country’s import partners in South Africa?
- Where china ranks among a country’s import partners in South Africa was 1 rank in 2025, according to International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest where china ranks among a country’s import partners recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 8 rank in 1999.
- What is the lowest where china ranks among a country’s import partners recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 rank in 2009.
- How does South Africa rank for where china ranks among a country’s import partners?
- South Africa ranks 124th out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is where china ranks among a country’s import partners rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Where China ranks among a country’s import partners. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Rank of China among a country's import partners, based on import values that include the cost of goods, freight, and insurance. A rank of 1 means it is the country's largest import partner.