U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to halt aid to South Africa in response to its land expropriation policies, triggering a decline in the rand.
“The United States won’t stand for it, we will act,” Trump declared in a Sunday evening post on Truth Social. “Also, I will be cutting off all future funding to South Africa until a full investigation of this situation has been completed!”
His remarks come less than two weeks after South African President Cyril Ramaphosa signed a law facilitating land expropriation by the state, with provisions for equitable compensation.
The ruling African National Congress (ANC) has long advocated for land reform to address racial disparities in land ownership that stem from colonialism and White-minority rule.
Following Trump’s statement, the South African rand fell 2% against the dollar in Asian trading. Emerging-market currencies also came under pressure as Trump moved forward with tariffs on countries including China and Mexico.

Over the past two decades, the U.S. has provided South Africa with more than $8 billion in bilateral aid, according to a 2023 Congressional Research Service report. Much of this funding has supported HIV/AIDS initiatives and other development programs.
This is not Trump’s first economic threat against South Africa. The country, as part of the BRICS bloc, has faced his warnings before. In December, Trump threatened a 100% tariff on BRICS nations if they shifted away from the U.S. dollar.
As the current chair of the Group of 20 (G20), South Africa will host key international meetings this year. If Trump returns to the presidency, he would be expected to attend. Notably, his top billionaire supporter, Elon Musk, was born in Pretoria, South Africa.