Johannesburg
South Africa may still have relatively few confirmed coronavirus cases but the flailing economy’s two major foreign exchange earners — mining and tourism — are bracing to take a hit. China holds a special place in the economy of Africa’s most industrialised country which slid into recession in the last quarter of 2019. Around 18.5 percent of South African exports go to China, with mining commodities making up the majority — at around 86 percent — of total trade with the Asian country. “Iron ore, manganese and chrome account for two thirds of South Africa’s total exports to China by value,” a recent report by Strategy&, a subsidiary of Price Waterhouse Cooper, found..—AFP