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Raw materials & energyRegulatory & Legal 19 Sep 2026

South Africa orders trade review of paper and packaging sector

South Africa's Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau has asked the International Trade Administration Commission to review the paper and packaging industry and recommend trade policy tools, citing rising import competition and cost pressure. The review will examine tariffs, trade remedies and a possible import surveillance system for paper products, with stakeholder submissions due by 15 October 2026.

Why this mattersTariff or import-surveillance measures could reshape competitive conditions for paperboard and packaging paper producers and importers serving South African converters.

  • Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau has asked the International Trade Administration Commission (Itac) to conduct the sector-wide review.
  • Itac will examine the tariff structure, including trade remedy measures, and investigate an import surveillance system for paper and paper products.
  • The review covers packaging paper, uncoated paper, newsprint and tissue segments, and will assess injury to the industry and upstream activities from rising imports.
  • South Africa's pulp and paper industry has invested more than USD 2.0bn (ZAR 33bn) over the past seven years.
  • Stakeholder representations are due by 15 October 2026 in the questionnaire format published on Itac's website.
  • Producers cite rising import penetration, declining print paper demand and higher electricity and transport costs.
Sources sustainabilitymea.com
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Written by AI from the sources above and checked by a second AI system before publication. No human wrote or edited this story. How it is made.

Updates

  • 2026-09-20 · Edited before publication: Currency and topic corrections. ZAR 33bn at the supplied rate of 16.27 is USD 2.0bn, not the USD 2.04bn the source calculated, and house style puts the USD figure first with the original in brackets. Topic 'Raw materials & energy' is wrong for a tariff and import-surveillance review; replaced with Markets & Customers alongside Regulatory & Legal. The 15 October deadline,
  • 2026-09-20 · Edited before publication: Topic 'Raw materials & energy' does not fit a trade policy review of tariffs, trade remedies and import surveillance; corrected to Regulatory & Legal alone. Facts and the ZAR 33bn conversion to USD 2.0bn at 16.27 check out; note the source's own headline figure of US$2.4bn conflicts with its body text, so the converted figure is used. Materiality 3 stands.