Trade in a Bottle: Identifying Import Bottlenecks in International Trade

Country Matrix

For 2025, the matrix below shows South Africa's number of import bottlenecks for different combinations of minimum import share (%) and minimum import value (USD). Red parentheses show bottlenecks from Danger Zone countries, and lime square brackets show bottlenecks involving Critical Goods.

South Africa

Year: 2025(20 in Danger Zone)[4 Critical Goods]
Value \ Share>= 30%>= 40%>= 50%>= 60%>= 70%>= 80%>= 90%
>= 10 mln USD664(20)[4]526(16)[3]425(9)[3]335(8)[2]251(7)[2]178(6)[2]88(5)[2]
>= 50 mln USD126(7)[4]102(5)[3]87(2)[3]66(2)[2]49(1)[2]37[2]23[2]
>= 100 mln USD60(2)[4]51(2)[3]46(2)[3]33(2)[2]27(1)[2]19[2]14[2]
>= 200 mln USD31(2)[3]26(2)[2]24(2)[2]19(2)[2]15(1)[2]10[2]8[2]
>= 500 mln USD9[1]765532

Danger Zone Bottlenecks (20 records, >= 30% share, >= 10 mln USD)

#Partner HS Code HS DescriptionYearShare (%) Value (USD)
1Saudi Arabia290250Cyclic hydrocarbons; styrene202599.37%33,049,657
2Russian Federation310240Fertilizers, mineral or chemical; ammonium nitrate with calcium carbonate or other inorganic non-fertilizing substances, mixtures thereof202599.20%15,092,299
3Saudi Arabia252310Cement clinkers (whether or not coloured)202597.73%17,031,465
4Saudi Arabia290511Alcohols; saturated monohydric, methanol (methyl alcohol)202597.65%13,474,081
5Saudi Arabia291614Acids; unsaturated acyclic monocarboxylic acids; esters of methacrylic acid202591.50%15,600,532
6Saudi Arabia290531Alcohols; acyclic, diols; ethylene glycol (ethanediol)202580.19%37,134,607
7Russian Federation310540Fertilizers, mineral or chemical; ammonium dihydrogenorthophosphate (monoammonium phosphate) and mixtures thereof with diammonium hydrogenorthophosphate (diammonium phosphate)202578.55%222,433,670
8United Arab Emirates740811Copper; wire, of refined copper, of which the maximum cross-sectional dimension exceeds 6mm202565.96%260,766,240
9Russian Federation283526Phosphates; of calcium n.e.c. in item no. 2835.25, whether or not chemically defined202555.60%14,601,476
10Saudi Arabia281410Ammonia; anhydrous202549.62%36,326,002
11Qatar281512Sodium hydroxide (caustic soda); in aqueous solution (soda lye or liquid soda)202547.64%39,739,651
12Bahrain760120Aluminium; unwrought, alloys202547.33%31,269,815
13Saudi Arabia250300Sulphur of all kinds; other than sublimed, precipitated and colloidal sulphur202546.18%54,793,902
14Saudi Arabia381700Mixed alkylbenzenes and mixed alkylnaphthalenes, other than those of heading no. 2707 or 2902202543.49%51,319,756
15Russian Federation310260Fertilizers, mineral or chemical; nitrogenous, double salts and mixtures of calcium nitrate and ammonium nitrate202542.75%17,769,061
16United Arab Emirates790111Zinc; unwrought, (not alloyed), containing by weight 99.99% or more of zinc202542.51%66,177,332
17Russian Federation310420Fertilizers, mineral or chemical; potassic, potassium chloride202539.77%67,626,848
18Qatar281410Ammonia; anhydrous202536.71%26,876,434
19Saudi Arabia390110Ethylene polymers; in primary forms, polyethylene having a specific gravity of less than 0.94202534.59%57,657,545
20Saudi Arabia390140Ethylene polymers; in primary forms, ethylene-alpha-olefin copolymers, having a specific gravity of less than 0.94202533.90%26,350,520

Partner frequency summary:

Saudi Arabia: 10 occurrences

Russian Federation: 5 occurrences

United Arab Emirates: 2 occurrences

Qatar: 2 occurrences

Bahrain: 1 occurrence

Legend:

(n)

The number in red parentheses indicates bottlenecks from countries flagged in the Danger Zone.

[n]

The number in lime square brackets indicates bottlenecks involving HS codes flagged in Critical Goods.