Forecasts suggest that South Africa's agricultural export earnings are poised to experience a slight deceleration this year compared to the record $12.8 billion in 2022.
According to Wandile Sihlobo, chief economist at the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa (Agbiz), the primary drivers behind this scenario are the convergence of lower commodity prices, persistent limitations on certain livestock product exports due to the presence of foot-and-mouth disease, and the stringent regulatory framework surrounding the citrus black spot disease within the European Union.
"While our agricultural exports have remained relatively solid in the first few months of the year, we expect the effects of these challenges to be more evident in the second half," he told Freight News.
"South Africa's agricultural exports for the first five months of this year were still robust, amounting to $5.06bn, roughly unchanged from the corresponding period in 2022."
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