Buying and selling are essential for any country to develop its economy and maintain good relations with other nations. The first table below shows top trading partners of South Africa in terms of export sales (selling), including United States, Japan, and Germany. The second lists top trade partners of South Africa regarding import total (buying). That is, most products are imported from these countries to South Africa.
South Africa Major Exports
Market Value: 62,876 (millions) – Last Updated: June, 2019
| Rank | Country (Exports To) | Trade Value (thousands) | Share (%) | Growth (% 5yr) |
| 1 | United States | 7,790,839 | 12.39 | 66.37 |
| 2 | Japan | 7,661,174 | 12.18 | 86.65 |
| 3 | Germany | 5,494,320 | 8.74 | 70.00 |
| 4 | United Kingdom | 4,693,477 | 7.46 | 11.50 |
| 5 | China | 4,250,392 | 6.76 | 303.18 |
| 6 | Netherlands | 3,359,935 | 5.34 | 82.80 |
| 7 | India | 2,205,116 | 3.51 | 289.37 |
| 8 | Belgium | 1,960,054 | 3.12 | 74.27 |
| 9 | Spain | 1,815,343 | 2.89 | 63.66 |
| 10 | Zambia | 1,581,754 | 2.52 | 116.04 |
| 11 | Italy | 1,530,664 | 2.43 | 28.75 |
| 12 | Switzerland | 1,506,269 | 2.40 | 33.88 |
| 13 | South Korea | 1,471,538 | 2.34 | 110.96 |
| 14 | Zimbabwe | 1,363,075 | 2.17 | 46.93 |
| 15 | France | 1,170,192 | 1.86 | 31.12 |
| 16 | Mozambique | 1,146,011 | 1.82 | 45.72 |
| 17 | DR Congo | 880,405 | 1.40 | 324.31 |
| 18 | Israel | 797,532 | 1.27 | 25.66 |
| 19 | Nigeria | 701,734 | 1.12 | 58.08 |
| 20 | United Arab Emirates | 653,422 | 1.04 | 90.19 |
| 21 | Brazil | 605,167 | 0.96 | 147.77 |
| 22 | Hong Kong | 594,262 | 0.95 | 12.69 |
| 23 | Malaysia | 579,816 | 0.92 | 117.48 |
| 24 | Kenya | 528,058 | 0.84 | 17.56 |
| 25 | Singapore | 500,218 | 0.80 | 62.15 |
| 26 | Turkey | 461,080 | 0.73 | 190.88 |
| 27 | Sweden | 383,052 | 0.61 | 106.94 |
| 28 | Canada | 359,518 | 0.57 | (0.14) |
| 29 | Thailand | 351,528 | 0.56 | (0.28) |
| 30 | Portugal | 343,276 | 0.55 | 209.11 |
| 31 | Tanzania | 335,373 | 0.53 | (2.01) |
| 32 | Poland | 292,961 | 0.47 | 568.31 |
| 33 | Saudi Arabia | 287,639 | 0.46 | 28.41 |
| 34 | Ghana | 260,124 | 0.41 | 35.81 |
| 35 | Malawi | 248,037 | 0.39 | 2.06 |
| 36 | Mauritius | 247,430 | 0.39 | (8.11) |
South Africa Major Imports
Market Value: 63,561 (millions) – Last Updated: June, 2019
| Rank | Country (Imports From) | Trade Value (thousands) | Share (%) | Growth (% 5yr) |
| 1 | China | 8,661,813 | 13.63 | 141.33 |
| 2 | Germany | 6,559,606 | 10.32 | (3.22) |
| 3 | United States | 5,605,805 | 8.82 | 35.77 |
| 4 | Saudi Arabia | 5,510,528 | 8.67 | 106.73 |
| 5 | Iran | 3,280,221 | 5.16 | 38.05 |
| 6 | Japan | 3,051,717 | 4.80 | (6.68) |
| 7 | United Kingdom | 2,738,064 | 4.31 | (16.26) |
| 8 | France | 2,012,968 | 3.17 | (30.63) |
| 9 | India | 1,882,578 | 2.96 | 165.55 |
| 10 | Nigeria | 1,861,266 | 2.93 | 129.58 |
| 11 | Italy | 1,693,425 | 2.66 | 17.21 |
| 12 | Yemen | 1,276,314 | 2.01 | 1,381.73 |
| 13 | South Korea | 1,237,198 | 1.95 | 22.07 |
| 14 | Brazil | 1,082,259 | 1.70 | 8.14 |
| 15 | Thailand | 1,058,781 | 1.67 | 58.97 |
| 16 | Sweden | 1,048,146 | 1.65 | 63.44 |
| 17 | Netherlands | 888,620 | 1.40 | 25.54 |
| 18 | Malaysia | 870,630 | 1.37 | 46.75 |
| 19 | Belgium | 828,921 | 1.30 | 38.34 |
| 20 | United Arab Emirates | 821,057 | 1.29 | 656.96 |
| 21 | Singapore | 759,916 | 1.20 | 86.77 |
| 22 | Zimbabwe | 715,108 | 1.13 | 65.63 |
| 23 | Ireland | 677,884 | 1.07 | 6.92 |
| 24 | Canada | 677,375 | 1.07 | 114.91 |
| 25 | Spain | 673,930 | 1.06 | 0.12 |
| 26 | Finland | 599,136 | 0.94 | 59.17 |
| 27 | Turkey | 563,958 | 0.89 | 185.90 |
| 28 | Indonesia | 512,394 | 0.81 | 65.38 |
| 29 | Switzerland | 496,671 | 0.78 | 2.71 |
| 30 | Austria | 460,453 | 0.72 | 7.18 |
| 31 | South Africa | 368,026 | 0.58 | NA |
| 32 | Hungary | 301,562 | 0.47 | 5.43 |
| 33 | Venezuela | 301,557 | 0.47 | 6,579.11 |
| 34 | Russia | 291,301 | 0.46 | 622.78 |
| 35 | Poland | 277,990 | 0.44 | 135.71 |
| 36 | Zambia | 266,813 | 0.42 | 71.33 |