Pretoria, 31 August 2020 – The South African Revenue Service (SARS) today releases trade statistics for July 2020 recording a trade surplus of R37.42 billion. These statistics include trade data with Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho and Namibia (BELN). The year-to-date (01 January to 31 July 2020) trade surplus of R95.56 billion is an improvement from the R8.64 billion deficit for the comparable period in 2019. Exports increased by 9.4% year-on-year whilst imports declined by 26.5% over the same period.