March bulk exports grew by 11.8% year-on-year

South African March bulk exports grew by 11.8% year-on-year to 17.079 million tons (Mt).

Apr 16, 2026 - 11:00

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South African March bulk exports grew by 11.8% year-on-year to 17.079 million tons (Mt). The first quarter increase was 13.4% to 48.491 Mt. If this is multiplied by four to get to an annual total, then South Africa could export 194 Mt in bulk commodities.

Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) data showed that the recent peak was 173.4 Mt achieved in 2019. The first quarter growth shows that this target could easily be beaten in 2026.

So where will this growth come from?

The two main bulk export harbours are Richards Bay, where the Richards Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT) is located and therefore handles mostly coal, and Saldanha Bay, which is at the end of the Sishen-Saldanha railway and mostly exports iron ore.

The other ports such as Cape Town, Durban, East London, Ngqura, and Port Elizabeth do not concentrate on bulk exports, so they handle bulk exports such as coal, manganese, and sugar.

RBCT has a design capacity of 91 Mt per year, while its peak exports were 76.5 Mt in 2017, so most of the increased tonnage will come from this port. In the first quarter, the increase was 9.8%.

Saldanha did a little better with a 10.0% gain. Ngqura is still under-utilised, but if manganese exports can be increased substantially, then this would be a viable avenue for growth. This seems to be the case as growth from the other ports was a substantial 34.3% year-on-year.

Liquid bulk imports

The concern among economists is the impact of the Middle East war on liquid bulk imports such as crude oil and petrochemical products like diesel.

Already in February, South Africa has switched its crude oil imports from Oman, which was the fifth largest import source by value in January, to Nigeria.

The TNPA data shows that bulk liquid imports grew to 2 740 045 tons in March from 2 258 755 tons in February. Nevertheless, this is 13.8% less than 3 177 562 tons imported in March 2025.

Prospects

Transnet aims to increase freight rail volume to 250 Mt by 2030. A R125 billion investment plan over five years drives this increase. The first quarter 2026 bulk exports show that Transnet should reach its target.

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