JOHANNESBURG, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- China's zero-tariff treatment is helping African businesses lower export costs, while growing renminbi (RMB) settlement capacity is further facilitating trade between Africa and China, a South African banking executive said Wednesday.
In a statement, Bill Blackie, chief executive of Business and Commercial Banking at Standard Bank Group, said that African exporters, including those from South Africa, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Nigeria, have begun to see tangible benefits from improved access to the Chinese market since China's zero-tariff treatment for 53 African countries with which it has diplomatic relations took effect on May 1.
"For many businesses, the emerging opportunity is not only to reduce landed costs, but to broaden export destinations, improve route-to-market resilience and reduce reliance on a narrow set of trading partners," he said.
The benefits of the zero-tariff treatment are already being felt across a range of African products entering the Chinese market, he said, citing South African apples as an example.
The first shipment of South African apples cleared through Shenzhen Bay Port under the framework following the removal of a previous 10 percent tariff, saving the importer about 20,000 yuan (about 2,976 U.S. dollars). Based on historical import volumes, the importer projected annual savings of more than 1.47 million dollars.
Kenyan coffee, Zimbabwean tobacco and Nigerian bovine bone products are among other African products benefiting from the zero-tariff framework, he added.
Beyond immediate tariff savings, Blackie said the policy is providing African businesses with opportunities to diversify export destinations and strengthen trade resilience amid growing uncertainties in the global trading environment.
Standard Bank's latest Africa Trade Barometer showed that 35 percent of businesses surveyed across 10 African markets identified Asian countries as their preferred trading partners, up from 24 percent in 2024, while China remains a major source of imported inputs for African businesses, cited by 67 percent of respondents.
Blackie also noted that improved RMB settlement and payment capabilities are helping businesses translate better market access into actual trade flows by reducing transaction friction and improving efficiency along the Africa-China trade corridor.
As Africa-China trade expands, greater use of the RMB in cross-border transactions could further lower trading costs and improve settlement efficiency, he said.
Standard Bank, in partnership with the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, has developed an integrated ecosystem across payments, foreign exchange, trade finance and risk management for businesses trading between Africa and China, Blackie said.
Through its participation in China's Cross-Border Interbank Payment System, or CIPS, Standard Bank currently provides RMB payment connectivity in 10 African markets, enabling some cross-border payments to be settled within minutes rather than days, he added.
Blackie said the businesses that combine the tariff reduction with the settlement, payment and market-connectivity infrastructure required to make the corridor a stable and scalable part of their trade operations will stand to benefit most. ■