South Africa imposes provisional 21% duty on office paper imports; Sappi seeks newsprint protection

South Africa's trade regulator Itac has introduced a provisional 21% safeguard duty on imported A3 and A4 office paper, following an application by Mondi South Africa backed by Sappi. Sappi CEO Steve Binnie said the tariff alone will not restore competitiveness and called for fixes to ports, rail and electricity supply, while also seeking protection against newsprint imports. Port of Durban congestion delayed about 38,000 tonnes of Sappi's dissolving wood pulp shipments in its fourth quarter.

Why this mattersA 21% duty shields South African office paper producers from imports, but port, rail and power constraints still limit their competitiveness, as Sappi's delayed pulp shipments show.

• Itac imposed a provisional 21% safeguard duty on imported A3 and A4 office paper
• Mondi South Africa applied for the duty, supported by Sappi
• Sappi is separately seeking protection against newsprint imports
• Port of Durban congestion delayed about 38,000 tonnes of Sappi dissolving wood pulp in Q4
• Sappi generates about 65% of its own power and relies on Eskom for roughly a third of electricity
• Dissolving wood pulp prices rose USD 22 a tonne during the quarter to about USD 920

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