Current account balance in South Africa
South Africa: Current account balance was -3.4% in 2011. ▲ Rising
Current account balance in South Africa, 2005–2011
Source: International Monetary Fund, Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files. Measured in % of GNP.
Analysis
In 2011, current account balance in South Africa stood at -3.4%.
That represents a change of down 20.7% on the previous year and up 2.6% over ten years.
South Africa ranks 14th of 41 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Current account balance in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of GNP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | -3.5% | — |
| 2006 | -5.4% | +52.7% |
| 2007 | -7.2% | +34.8% |
| 2008 | -7.6% | +4.7% |
| 2009 | -4.1% | -46.0% |
| 2010 | -2.8% | -30.6% |
| 2011 | -3.4% | +20.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | -5.6% | -7.6% | -3.5% | 5 |
| 2010s | -3.1% | -3.4% | -2.8% | 2 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More trade data for South Africa
- Commodity Net Export Price Index, Individual Commodities Weighted by 109.35 (2025)
- Commodity Net Export Price Index, Individual Commodities Weighted by 100.81 (2025)
- Commodity Export Price Index, Individual Commodites Weighted by Ratio 99.79 (2025)
- Commodity Export Price Index, Individual Commodites Weighted by Ratio 95.89 (2025)
- Commodity Import Price Index, Individual Commodites Weighted by Ratio 98.98 (2025)
- Commodity Import Price Index, Individual Commodites Weighted by Ratio 77.42 (2025)
- Imports of low carbon technology products, Percent of GDP 1.03 (2024)
- Imports of low carbon technology products, US dollar (World), per 64.23 units per person (2024)
- Imports of low carbon technology products, US dollar (World), per 0.0102 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Exports of low carbon technology products, US dollar (World), gaps 1.75 billion (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is current account balance in South Africa?
- Current account balance in South Africa was -3.4% in 2011, according to International Monetary Fund, Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files.
- What is the highest current account balance recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was -2.8% in 2010.
- What is the lowest current account balance recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was -7.6% in 2008.
- How does South Africa rank for current account balance?
- South Africa ranks 14th out of 41 countries with data for 2011.
- Is current account balance rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from International Monetary Fund, Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, published as part of Current account balance (% of GNP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Current account balance is the sum of net exports of goods, services, net income, and net current transfers. Data are in current U.S. dollars. Data are divided by GNP at market prices in U.S. dollars to facilitate comparison across economies.