This book comparatively examines the China-South Africa trade relationship over three decades through the prism of four other relationships South Africa has with states that have been China's most contentious neighbours in the Indo-Pacific (India, Japan, Taiwan and the USA). Asia is widely expected to be the new economic centre of gravity in international relations, particularly for trade. Yet despite the story of growth for both it and its neighbours, China ranks above all these countries in terms of trade partnership with South Africa and a majority of states across the globe. This poses a puzzle answerable only through in-depth analysis. In this way, this pathbreaking new book uses quantitative data to test commonly held assumptions about the 'new scramble for Africa' and shines a light on the driving forces, interests and sources of agency in South Africa's trade and foreign policies over the past three decades. The findings allow for the deduction of general patterns applicableto South Africa and peer economies, some of whom are benchmarked throughout the book for comparative insights.

Bhaso Ndzendze is Senior Lecturer and Head of Department at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) Department of Politics and International Relations. His research on China-Africa relations has appeared in numerous leading journals and books. He was formerly Research Director at the Centre for Africa-China Studies at UJ.

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Chapter 1: Introduction: Differentiated EngagementChapter 2: The Contemporary Asian Balance Chapter 3: Taiwan: The International Political Economy of the One China Policy Chapter 4: Japan: Economically Hot, Politically ColdChapter 5: India: Between Two Southern PowersChapter 6: United States: An Imaginary Scramble for Markets?Chapter 7: The European Union Conclusion: The Future of Differentiated Engagement Appendix A: Game theory model of Asia-Pacific regional competition Appendix B: Historical evolution of Rand per US Dollar