Motor city Nelson Mandela Bay is buckling under a tide of Asian imports

By Alexander Parker and Matthew Hill

Luthando Kolisi jokes that if he finds work at another factory, it will probably end up shutting down. That’s how he lost his last two jobs.

Since being let go from the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co factory in Nelson Mandela Bay — a city that is the heart of the country’s automotive industry — he’s sent out countless applications, while eking out a bit of cash from odd jobs.

“I’m slowly beginning to lose that hope,” he said.

The auto sector makes up the biggest share of South Africa’s manufacturing and its contribution to the country’s economic output rivals that of the mining sector, but it is buckling under the pressure of rising costs and a flood of cheaper imports from India and China.

Companies, including giant manufacturers Toyota Motor Corp and Volkswagen AG, are clamouring for urgent policy interventions to help them compete.