On 20 October 2026, the International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa (ITAC) released a media release titled “ITAC increases customs duty on newsprint (lightweight paper) from 0 to 5% ad valorem.”
ITAC received an application from Sappi Southern Africa Limited to increase the ‘General’ customs duty rate on newsprint, in rolls or sheets, from free of duty to 5% ad valorem.
Sappi’s Ngodwana Mill in Mpumalanga Province submitted the tariff increase application. The Ngodwana Mill is one of Sappi’s largest integrated pulp and paper production facilities. It produces paper pulp, Dissolving Wood Pulp (DWP), kraft liner paper, packaging paper and newsprint for both domestic and international markets.
The applicant submitted, among other things, that sustained financial losses from declining global newsprint demand, global overcapacity and rising low-priced imports threaten the viability of Sappi’s Ngodwana Mill (PM2), necessitating tariff protection to safeguard employment and preserve domestic newsprint manufacturing capacity.
During its deliberations, ITAC considered the information available, including comments received during the investigation. It found that declining global newsprint demand, persistent excess capacity and increased low-priced imports had weakened the domestic newsprint industry’s operational and financial performance. This was reflected in declining production and sales volumes, capacity utilisation and market share, along with a significant price disadvantage against imports and consistently declining profitability over the investigation period.
ITAC then recommended increasing the customs duty rate on newsprint, in rolls or sheets, classifiable under tariff subheading 4801.00, from free of duty to 5% ad valorem. ITAC further decided that the duty structure should be reviewed three (3) years after implementation, or within such other period as it may determine, to assess the measure’s effectiveness and its impact on the domestic industry, downstream users and the broader value chain.
Full details of ITAC’s findings and recommendations are contained in Report No. 784.
The media release is accessible at:
https://itac.org.za/wp-content/uploads/Media-Release-ITAC-increases-customs-duty-on-newsprint.pdf