China drops tariffs on Africa

China began applying zero tariffs to imports from 53 African countries on May 1, widening duty-free access beyond the 33 least-developed African states that were already covered under an earlier scheme. China’s Commerce Ministry said the latest step extends preferential treatment to 20 additional African countries with diplomatic ties to Beijing, including South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt and Morocco. Eswatini is the only African country left out because it maintains formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, according to Chinese state media and other reports. The move took effect as Beijing cast itself as an advocate of market access for developing economies while U.S. tariff actions and trade investigations remain in place. ### Which African countries were newly added on May 1? China’s Commerce Ministry said the May 1 measure applies to 20 African countries that are not classified as least-developed countries and had not previously received full zero-tariff treatment. In a ministry question-and-answer published on April 30, the ministry listed Algeria, Botswana, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Libya, Mauritius, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Seychelles, South Africa, Tunisia and Zimbabwe. The ministry said the 33 African least-developed countries with diplomatic ties to China were already receiving zero-tariff treatment on 100% of tariff lines from Dec. 1, 2024. With the May 1 expansion, China said all 53 African countries that recognize Beijing are now covered. ### Why is Eswatini the only exception? Eswatini is excluded because it is the only African country that maintains formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan rather than China, according to Africanews and Business Insider Africa. Beijing says the new policy covers African countries “with diplomatic ties” to China. Africanews reported on May 1 that the Customs Tariff Commission of China’s State Council described the arrangement as “tariff-free treatment” for eligible African goods. Chinese state media and other reports identified Eswatini as the sole holdout on the continent. ### What products stand to benefit first? China’s Commerce Ministry gave product examples that show where the tariff cuts could matter fastest. The ministry said tariffs on cocoa from Ivory Coast and Ghana had ranged from 8% to 22%, while Kenyan coffee and avocados had faced tariffs of 8% to 30% and 20%, respectively. South African citrus and wine had previously faced tariffs of 12% and 14% to 20%, the ministry said. Xinhua reported on May 1 that 24 tonnes of South African apples cleared customs in Shenzhen in the early hours of Friday as the first batch to enter under the expanded policy. Chinese state media later reported that fresh African products were already reaching Chinese consumers under the new rules. ### Is this a permanent arrangement? China’s Commerce Ministry said the new zero-tariff treatment for the 20 newly added countries will be implemented “for two years” as a preferential tariff arrangement. The ministry said African partners should continue negotiating what Beijing calls common development economic partnership agreements to secure long-term, stable and institutionalized zero-tariff treatment. The April 30 ministry statement described the May 1 step as a transitional and leading arrangement for countries that could not complete those negotiations quickly. Beijing said the agreements would also address non-tariff barriers, trade facilitation and investment. ### How does Beijing describe the timing? Xi Jinping announced the May 1 start date in a congratulatory message to an African Union summit on Feb. 14, according to China’s Commerce Ministry. The ministry said the policy shows China’s willingness to expand “high-level opening up” and offer African countries a larger market during what it called a period of rising unilateralism and protectionism. Britain’s House of Commons Library said the United States’ current tariff regime includes a 25% tariff introduced on Jan. 14, 2026, and noted further investigations on pharmaceuticals and the possibility of 100% tariffs on some categories announced on Sept. 26. China did not name the United States in the ministry statement, but Chinese state media said the policy took effect amid “global headwinds of protectionism.” China’s Commerce Ministry said the next step is continued negotiation of common development economic partnership agreements with the African countries newly covered from May 1. The current preferential tariff treatment for those 20 countries is set to run for two years under the ministry’s published terms.