South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said the country should "prepare" for the possibility of being removed from Washington's duty-free trade programme for Africa, as ties between the two nations continue to fray.
The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which grants eligible sub-Saharan African countries preferential access to the US market, has been renewed until the end of 2028.
South Africa is the scheme's largest beneficiary but its eligibility has come under scrutiny as Washington steps up criticism of Pretoria, including false allegations of discrimination against white Afrikaners that South Africa rejects.
"Congress has decided that we should be kept in AGOA. What now remains is the executive," Ramaphosa said, referring to the pact now needing President Donald Trump's signature after approval by Congress.
"And by the way, so that I prepare our people for this, if we ever have a choice, we are not the first and only country to be taken out of AGOA. And I believe we will not be the last," he said in response to a question from an AFP journalist during a briefing.
Bilateral ties have deteriorated since Trump took office, with Washington cutting aid, expelling South Africa's ambassador and berating Ramaphosa in the Oval Office over discredited claims of a "white genocide".
Washington in mid-September announced restrictions on visas for South Africans who promote "race-based discrimination, incite violence, or enable land confiscation without compensation in South Africa" -- all issues that are disputed between the two countries.
Last year, the United States launched a programme to resettle white Afrikaners who say they face persecution and violent crime in South Africa.
By September 30, the United States had admitted 16,287 South Africans under the programme over the preceding year. They were the only people granted refugee status by Washington during that period, apart from five Afghans.
'Devastating' impact
The US president reviews countries' eligibility for AGOA annually.
Any removal requires 60 days' notice to Congress and the country concerned. To take effect on January 1, an exclusion must be announced by November 2.
Former president Joe Biden declared the Central African Republic, Gabon, Niger and Uganda ineligible on October 30, 2023, with the exclusions taking effect on January 1, 2024.
South Africa is going to look for alternative markets to minimise the impacts of such an exclusion, Ramaphosa said.
"I need as president to prepare us if it ever happens. So we should not go out and jump off tall buildings and think that this is the end of the world," he said, conceding that the impacts would nonetheless be "devastating".
Within AGOA, Washington exempts South African cars from customs duties.
After precious metals, cars are the country's second-biggest export earner to the United States, according to the South African tax authorities.
In 2025, the automobile employers' organisation Naamsa said 86,000 jobs were directly tied to the accord at car manufacturers, a number that increases to 125,000 when including their sub-contractors.
AFP