South Africa’s Auto Industry Threatened By Worsening Port Delays

By Matthew Hill and Alexander Parker

Nov 14, 2026 (Bloomberg) –Severe delays at South Africa’s biggest container terminal in the port city of Durban are threatening the nation’s auto industry, already under strain from a tide of cheap Asian imports and US tariffs. 

While Durban has long been among the world’s worst-performing container ports, the government sought to address that through the introduction of a private operator in January. But problems with the new operating system rolled out by Manila-based International Container Terminal Services, Inc. has roughly doubled vessel waiting times since then, South Africa’s Transport Minister Barbara Creecy said last month.

The country’s auto sector, which rivals mining for its contribution to economic output, is bearing the brunt of the logjams. Nearly half the market value of Metair Investments Ltd., a local parts manufacturer supplying Volkswagen, Ford and Toyota, was wiped out on Friday after it warned that port backlogs approaching 20 days threatened its ability to meet contractual arrangements. 

“The impact of port congestion and delays is widespread across the automotive manufacturing value chain,” Renai Moothilal, chief executive officer at the National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers, said in reply to questions. “These are detrimental to the competitiveness of the value proposition for South African automotive manufacturers.”

Read More: Subcontinent Ports Benefiting from Geopolitical Disruptions 

Durban Gateway Terminal, the operator majority-owned by ICTSI, said it took the concerns of Metair and others seriously, and will meet Naacam’s members on Monday to discuss the disruptions. 

The new operating system platform has since stabilized, DGT’s CEO Javier Lancha said in a statement Friday. 

“DGT is currently keeping customers and stakeholders informed of terminal performance and any disruptions through its existing forums and engagement platforms,” he said. 

© 2026 Bloomberg L.P.

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