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8 Mining Commodities That South Africa Exports To The World

8 Mining Commodities That South Africa Exports To The World

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South Africa is one of the most mineral- and resource-rich countries in the world, and mining commodities form a big part of the country’s exports.

The depreciation in commodity prices over the past few years has been a major negative factor affecting the South African economy, with the demand for many of the mineral resources waning internationally. Mining makes up about 60 percent of the country’s exports, with eight of the 10 largest individual export categories being characterized as commodities.

We take a look at 8 of the mining commodities that South Africa exports to the rest of the world.

Sources: CommodityHQ, Barrons, HellenicShippingNews, IOL, WorldCoal, Mining.

gold

Gold

Gold is crucial to South Africa’s export base, representing around 5 percent of global mining production and about 11 percent of the world’s gold reserves. In 2015, gold prices have rose 4.58 percent, going against the grain of typical commodity trends during that time, as investors looked towards safe-haven assets during troubling financial periods.

diamonds botswana, Botswana Plans Economic Stimulus
Photo: gradlinkuk

Diamonds

Diamonds remain a significant part of South Africa’s mining industry. About 23 percent of the world’s supply was exported from its mines in 2014. South Africa saw less of a knock from diamond price decreases versus other commodities, but rough-diamond prices are still at their lowest in six years, according to WWW International Diamond Consultants. Diamond prices fell 18 percent in 2015, with the biggest producers De Beers (South Africa) and Alrosa (Russia), cutting output and sales.

Platinum www.c3ss.co.za
Platinum – www.c3ss.co.za

Platinum

South Africa is a major platinum group metals player, with about 73 percent of the world’s platinum mine production supply, which is an incredible number coming from a single country. Dwindling demand for the white metal used in catalytic converters in cars saw the price of platinum fall 28 percent in 2015, with the price at around $875 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange recently. Compare this to a price of $2,200 an ounce in 2008, and the export picture becomes clearer.

Photo: Jim Urquhart/rt.com/reuters
Coal – Photo: Jim Urquhart/rt.com/reuters

Coal

South Africa holds the distinction of being the world’s sixth-largest exporter of coal, while it also produces over 30 percent of its internal liquid fuel needs via coal. Exports at South Africa’s Richards Bay Coal Terminal hit a record 75.4 million tons in 2015, which was an increase of 4 percent on 2014. But while this may look positive, it needs to be considered in the context of South African coal prices languishing at seven-year lows.

Thabazimbi mine near the town of Thabazimbi in Limpopo Province has been in operation since 1931. Photo: bloy.co.za

Iron Ore

The value of the country’s exports in coal and iron is slightly more than the value of its gold exports, which is an excellent indicator of how much coal and iron ore is exported, and therefore its value to the economy. Growth in China’s seaborne iron ore imports slowed in 2015 to 3 percent, from an average of 11 percent between 2011 and 2014, which had a negative impact on iron ore prices. A drop in production in 2015, combined with low-cost ore output from major miners saw prices sink to an eight-year low of $38 per tonne in late 2015.

Chrome mine, South Africa wikimedia
Chrome mine, South Africa, wikimedia

Chromium

South Africa produces nearly half of the world’s chromium, and has around 70 percent of the world’s chrome reserves. This has been a great thing for the economy over the last decade as a whole, but the last few years have not been as kind to this commodity.

Vermiculite - wikipedia.org
Vermiculite – wikipedia.org

Vermiculite

Vermiculite is not well known as a mineral, but it is found as an alteration product of mica and other minerals, used for insulation or as a moisture-retentive medium for growing plants. South Africa is blessed with reserves of this commodity. This resource has also been affected by the financial slowdown and commodity slump. As a hotspot for the mineral, South Africa has taken a knock.

Thinkstock
Thinkstock

Copper

Used throughout the globe, copper is another resource mined and exported from South Africa. It has been a poor performer as a commodity in recent times. The copper price hit a new six-and-half year low of $4,270 per tonne. A 26-percent decline in price during 2015 was followed by another drop in 2016, affecting the return on exports.