Asians close to dislodging Europeans as Africa’s top trading partner

June 25, 2019 in Business, Foreign News, Markets, Trade & Industry by Editor

China and India further consolidated their positions as Africa’s first and second single largest trading partners, accounting for over 21 per cent of total African trade in 2018.

June 25—The Europeans’ long held position as Africa’s leading trading partners, is being increasingly challenged by the Chinese and Indians according to findings in The African Trade Report 2019: African Trade in a Digital World, recently launched in Moscow.

The report, which was published on the sidelines of 26^th Afreximbank Annual Meetings, states that Africa’s total merchandise trade in 2018 reached $997.9 billion.

However, while the European Union remained Africa’s main continental trading partner in 2018 – accounting for 29.8 pc of total trade – African trade with the South grew significantly over the last decade to account for more than 35 pc of the continent’s total trade in 2018.

Africa’s output grew by 3.4 per cent between 2017 and 2018 despite the slowdown in global growth during that period.

China and India further consolidated their positions as Africa’s first and second single largest trading partners, accounting for over 21 per cent of total African trade in 2018. Intra-African trade also increased steadily in 2018, growing by 17 per cent to reach $159 billion.

Prof. Benedict Oramah, President of Afreximbank said,“It is vital that Africa grasps the economic growth opportunities flowing from the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, growing domestic demand and population and our ever-closer investment and trading links with emerging partners in the South. We must exert concerted action to ensure that we develop, industrialize and diversify our industries and supporting infrastructure to foster regional integration and participate fully in regional and global value chains.”

The findings highlight the resilience of Africa’s economies to global volatility at a time of rising uncertainty, escalating trade wars and tariffs between the United States, China and others. The resilience reflects the diversification of Africa’s trading partners in the context of South-South trade, growing fixed investment and public and private consumption, boosted by expanding urban populations and softening inflation. These factors reduce Africa’s exposure to the business cycles associated with individual countries and regions.

Chief Economist and author of the report, Dr Hippolyte Fofack said, “Intra-African trade, which grew by 17 per cent in 2018, more than three times the rate of growth of extra-African trade, was the major driver of Africa’s total merchandise trade in 2018.”

On the other hand, while th report highlights that Africa has the potential to do more, its contribution to global trade remains marginal at 2.6 per cent, but  up from 2.4 percent in 2017.  Intra-African trade rose to 16 pc in 2018 from 5 percent in 1980, but this also remains low compared to intra-regional trade in Europe and Asia.

The report states that ongoing digitalisation is paving the way for a new African economy, with e-commerce platforms and internet penetration expediting transactions, reducing costs and leading to a new generation of transnational digital consumers.

The report urges African governments to further capitalise on the opportunities associated with digitalisation, by bolstering regulatory environments and supporting the development of digital ecosystems.

Digitalization, the reports states, can unlock Africa’s potential in driving economic development and the integration of African countries into the world economy. It can also reduce the region’s dependency on raw commodities and natural resources by helping economies diversify into more value-added products that can enhance extra-and intra-African trade.