Share of imports that come from China in South Africa
South Africa: Share of imports that come from China was 22.6% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of imports that come from China in South Africa, 1998–2025
Source: International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 22.6% for share of imports that come from china in 2025. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.7% on the previous year and up 22.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of imports that come from china in South Africa peaked at 22.6% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 3.0%, in 1998.
South Africa ranks 59th of 206 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Share of imports that come from China in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 3.0% | — |
| 1999 | 3.5% | +17.8% |
| 2000 | 3.8% | +7.3% |
| 2001 | 4.2% | +12.0% |
| 2002 | 5.2% | +24.4% |
| 2003 | 6.5% | +23.8% |
| 2004 | 7.6% | +16.9% |
| 2005 | 9.1% | +20.5% |
| 2006 | 10.0% | +9.9% |
| 2007 | 10.0% | +0.1% |
| 2008 | 11.1% | +10.2% |
| 2009 | 17.2% | +55.6% |
| 2010 | 14.0% | -18.6% |
| 2011 | 13.9% | -0.8% |
| 2012 | 14.1% | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 15.5% | +10.1% |
| 2014 | 15.5% | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 18.4% | +18.7% |
| 2016 | 18.3% | -1.0% |
| 2017 | 18.5% | +1.0% |
| 2018 | 18.6% | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 18.7% | +0.7% |
| 2020 | 21.0% | +12.2% |
| 2021 | 20.8% | -0.8% |
| 2022 | 20.4% | -1.8% |
| 2023 | 20.7% | +1.2% |
| 2024 | 21.8% | +5.5% |
| 2025 | 22.6% | +3.7% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 22.6% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 18.5%, 1.2× the median. (57 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 22.6% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 20.0%, 1.1× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3.2% | 3.0% | 3.5% | 2 |
| 2000s | 8.5% | 3.8% | 17.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 16.6% | 13.9% | 18.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 21.2% | 20.4% | 22.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
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 share of imports that come from china in South Africa?
- Share of imports that come from china in South Africa was 22.6% in 2025, according to International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of imports that come from china recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 22.6% in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of imports that come from china recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.0% in 1998.
- How does South Africa rank for share of imports that come from china?
- South Africa ranks 59th out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of imports that come from china rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 22.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- 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 Share of imports that come from China. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Percentage of a country's total goods imports, including freight and insurance costs, that come from China.