Over 11,000 tourists drawn to SA shores
File: People go down from a plane at the international airport of Cape Town. AFP/Stephane de Sakutin
JOHANNESBURG - Home Affairs has taken its visa application process online.
The Trusted Tour Operator Scheme was launched three months ago.
It's already attracted over 11,000 tourists from China and India.
It's hoped the fast-tracked application process will boost tourism and job creation.
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The Citizen
3 hours ago
- The Citizen
Trump says deal with Xi ‘extremely hard' as steel tariffs double
Donald Trump called Chinese leader Xi Jinping 'extremely hard' to deal with, even as the White House pushes for global trade offers ahead of the July 9 tariff deadline. A worker walks past rolls of steel at a steel market in Hangzhou, in eastern China's Zhejiang province on June 4, 2025. (Photo by AFP) / China OUT / CHINA OUT Donald Trump said on Wednesday that it was 'extremely hard' to reach a deal with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, but the EU touted progress in its own trade talks with Washington even though the US president doubled global metal tariffs. Trump's latest trade moves came as ministers from Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries gathered in Paris to discuss the outlook for the world economy in light of a US hardball approach that has rattled world markets. Trump's sweeping tariffs on allies and adversaries have strained ties with trading partners and sparked a flurry of negotiations to avoid the duties. The White House has suggested the president will speak to Xi this week, raising hopes they can soothe tensions and speed up a trade deal between the world's two biggest economies. However, early on Wednesday, Trump appeared to dampen hopes for a quick deal. ALSO READ: NPA 'taken aback' over Moroadi Cholota extradition ruling, hints at appeal 'I like President XI of China, always have, and always will, but he is VERY TOUGH, AND EXTREMELY HARD TO MAKE A DEAL WITH!!!' he posted on his Truth Social platform. Asked about the remarks during a regular press briefing, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said: 'The Chinese side's principles and stance on developing Sino-US relations are consistent.' China was the main target of Trump's April tariff blitz, hit with levies of 145 percent on its goods and triggering tit-for-tat tariffs of 125 percent on US imports. Both sides agreed to temporarily de-escalate in May, after Trump delayed most sweeping measures on other countries until July 9. His latest remarks came hours after he increased his tariffs on aluminum and steel from 25 percent to 50 percent, raising temperatures with various partners while exempting Britain from the higher levy. ALSO READ: Eight injured in 'flamethrower' attack on Israeli hostage protest in US EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic said after talks with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on the sidelines of the OECD meeting in Paris that raising the metal tariffs 'doesn't help the negotiations'. The two sides were nonetheless 'making progress' in their negotiations, Sefcovic said at a news conference. Goods from the 27-nation bloc will be hit with 50-percent tariffs on July 9 unless it reaches a deal with Washington. The EU has vowed to retaliate. 'We did very much focus on these negotiations, and I still believe in them,' Sefcovic said, adding that he was optimistic that a 'positive result' could be reached. Steel tariffs The US-EU meeting took place a day after the OECD cut its forecast for global economic growth, blaming Trump's tariff blitz for the downgrade. ALSO READ: Afrikaner 'refugees' continue to arrive in US on commercial flights – reports 'We need to come up with negotiated solutions as quickly as possible, because time is running out,' German economy minister Katherina Reiche warned. French trade minister Laurent Saint-Martin said: 'We have to keep our cool and always show that the introduction of these tariffs is in no one's interest.' After talks between UK Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds and Greer on Tuesday, London said that imports from the UK would remain at 25 percent for now. Both sides needed to work out duties and quotas in line with the terms of a recently signed trade pact. 'We're pleased that as a result of our agreement with the US, UK steel will not be subject to these additional tariffs,' a British government spokesperson said. White House wants offers The Group of Seven advanced economies — Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States — was due to hold separate trade talks on Wednesday. ALSO READ: 'There is no white genocide happening here,' says Trump's top pastor after SA visit Mexico will request an exemption from the higher tariff, Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard said, arguing that it was unfair because the United States exports more steel to its southern neighbour than it imports. 'It makes no sense to put a tariff on a product in which you have a surplus,' Ebrard said. Mexico is highly vulnerable to Trump's trade wars because 80 percent of its exports go to the United States, its main partner. While some of Trump's most sweeping levies face legal challenges, they have been allowed to remain in place for now as an appeals process takes place. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed on Tuesday that the Trump administration sent letters to governments pushing for offers by Wednesday as the July 9 deadline approached. NOW READ: US court blocks tariffs in major setback for Trump – By: © Agence France-Presse
IOL News
5 hours ago
- IOL News
High-cost loans, Trump turmoil hurting Africa, says G20 panel chief
Seasoned politician and anti-apartheid activist Trevor Manuel chairs the panel of experts working on proposals to address issues affecting Africa, including high debt, to be presented at a summit of the Group of 20 leading economies in November. Image: AFP Critically needed economic growth in Africa is being held back by high borrowing costs imposed by international lenders, with unpredictable US policy changes adding to the strain, the head of the G20 panel on the continent said. Seasoned politician and anti-apartheid activist Trevor Manuel chairs the panel of experts working on proposals to address issues affecting Africa, including high debt, to be presented at a summit of the Group of 20 leading economies in November. African nations are not necessarily more indebted than major economies but they face higher debt servicing costs, Manuel told AFP in an interview. The "unbelievably expensive and prohibitive" cost of capital for African nations has hobbled their development, said Manuel, who served as finance minister in post-apartheid South Africa for more than a decade. "We know that the risk premiums in general on Africa are much higher than they need to be, and that impacts them on the debt service costs," he added. More than half of Africa's 1.3 billion people live in countries with debt interest payments higher than social spending on health, education and infrastructure, according to the South African government. South Africa is the only African nation in the G20 and has made debt sustainability for developing countries one of the priorities of its presidency of the group of 19 countries, the African Union and European Union. African countries will pay close to $89 billion (R1.6 trillion) in external debt service alone this year, with 20 low-income countries at risk of debt distress, it says. Manuel said the panel will seek to persuade the entire G20 to engage with multilateral development banks, in particular the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, to address the issue of borrowing costs. 'Unbelievably difficult' Abrupt changes in global order since US President Donald Trump took office in January, such as sweeping aid cuts and trade tariffs, will have long-lasting ramifications for the continent, Manuel said. Trump's "capricious" announcement in April of major trade tariffs effectively did away with the African Growth and Opportunity Act, a major US-African trade deal that had helped to build some African economies, he said. He cited as examples the tiny kingdom of Lesotho, which faces 50% tariffs on exports to the US, including jeans and golf shirts, and Madagascar, which sends vanilla pods and is threatened with 47% tariffs. "It becomes unbelievably difficult for small countries that try and develop export markets, for their products to be struck by these sudden announcements," Manuel said. "There's no time for adjustment." Adding to the pressure is the termination of Usaid programmes and a push for Nato countries to increase defence spending, which restricts what they have available for overseas development assistance. "The impact on the African continent is going to be very severe," said Manuel. "We can't abstract Africa from the rest of the globe." "The realm of policymaking requires a greater degree of predictability and certainty than what we see at the moment," he said. "The fact that there are these occasional outbursts that aren't informed by reality as I see it... makes it even more complex." Intra-Africa Manuel said his panel's work on better understanding the African economy and developing solutions was likely to continue beyond this year's G20, for example, via the UN Economic Commission for Africa and the African Union. This included looking at "intra-African dynamics" such as the role of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) launched in 2019. Conflicts also cost the continent, he said, citing the war in Sudan and unrest that has held back a major gas project in impoverished northern Mozambique. "When countries spend more on war than what they do on the upliftment of people, then we face profound consequences," Manuel said. He said a strong United Nations and African Union were important in "persuading countries to do the right things" in the long term, beyond the sometimes disruptive short electoral cycles that usher in new leadership and policy changes. "If you don't have those kinds of objectives, which frequently will not be completed within a particular electoral cycle, I think we run ourselves into the ground." AFP
eNCA
8 hours ago
- eNCA
Trump says 'extremely hard' to do deal with Xi as steel tariffs double
USA - US President Donald Trump said Wednesday it was "extremely hard" to reach a deal with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, as he ramped up his global trade war by doubling tariffs on steel and aluminium imports. The comments and higher levies came as OECD ministers gathered to discuss the outlook for the world economy in light of the US hardball approach to trade that has rattled world markets. Trump's sweeping tariffs on allies and adversaries have strained ties with trading partners and sparked a flurry of negotiations to avoid the duties. The White House has suggested the president will speak to Xi this week, raising hopes they can soothe tensions and speed up a trade deal between the world's two biggest economies. However, in the early hours of Wednesday, Trump appeared to dampen hopes for a quick deal. "I like President XI of China, always have, and always will, but he is VERY TOUGH, AND EXTREMELY HARD TO MAKE A DEAL WITH!!!" he posted on his Truth Social platform. China was the main target of Trump's April 2 tariff blitz, hit with levies of 145 percent on its goods and triggering tit-for-tat tariffs of 125 percent on US goods. Both sides agreed to temporarily de-escalate in May, after the US president delayed most sweeping measures on other countries until July 9. His latest remarks came hours after his tolls on aluminium and steel were doubled from 25 percent to 50 percent, raising temperatures with various partners. The Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a 38-nation grouping of mostly developed countries, cut its global growth forecast on the back of Trump's levies, as ministers of the group held a meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday. Trade, consumption and investment have been affected by the tariffs, OECD chief economist Alvaro Pereira earlier told AFP and warned that the US economy will suffer the most. - Appeals process - While some of Trump's most sweeping levies face legal challenges, they have been allowed to remain in place for now as an appeals process takes place. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic are set to hold talks on the sidelines of the gathering, with the bloc seeking to stave off higher levies ahead of the July 9 deadline. With the latest US tolls on steel and aluminium kicking in, the European Union said it "strongly regrets" the decision to double the levies, cautioning that it "undermines ongoing efforts to reach a negotiated solution" with the United States and warning it was ready to retaliate. French trade minister Laurent Saint-Martin added: "We have to keep our cool and always show that the introduction of these tariffs is in no one's interest." Canada, the largest supplier of the metals to the United States, has called Trump's tariffs "illegal and unjustified". After talks between UK Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds and Greer on Tuesday, London said imports from the UK would remain at 25 percent for now. Both sides needed to work out duties and quotas in line with the terms of a recently signed trade pact. "We're pleased that as a result of our agreement with the US, UK steel will not be subject to these additional tariffs," a British government spokesperson said. The Group of Seven advanced economies - Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States - is due to hold separate talks on trade Wednesday. "We need to come up with negotiated solutions as quickly as possible, because time is running out," German economy minister Katherina Reiche said Tuesday, on the sidelines of the OECD. Mexico will request an exemption from the higher tariff, Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard said, arguing that it was unfair because the United States exports more steel to its southern neighbour than it imports. "It makes no sense to put a tariff on a product in which you have a surplus," Ebrard said. Mexico is highly vulnerable to Trump's trade wars because 80 percent of its exports go to the United States, its main partner. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Tuesday that the Trump administration sent letters to governments pushing for offers by Wednesday as the July 9 deadline approached.
