Hajra Omarjee’s article on government’s “contingency plan” in the event of the US raising a 30% tariff wall on SA exports refers (“Plan B to avert tariff crisis targets alternative markets and tax incentives”, July 31).
Governments don’t create markets — it’s businesses that find and develop trade relationships. In their small minds government officials are arrogant enough to believe they can create markets, but they can’t. This is true locally and internationally.
On the other hand, there are things governments can do to facilitate trade, or make it more difficult, or even prohibit trade entirely (such as the ban on scrap metal exports). In SA’s case the ANC has made it extremely difficult for businesses to trade with the US.
Ian Ferguson
Via BusinessLIVE
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