South African companies are looking for Irish partners for their industries and trying to attract Irish companies to source imports in South Africa.

A trade mission, headed by the Minister for Trade and Industry, Mr Alec Erwin, has been in Ireland for the last two days, meeting with retailers such as Arnotts, textile manufacturers, computer and IT companies and financial services and agribusiness companies.

"We're trying to persuade Arnotts to buy from South Africa. We're hoping our IT people will form partnerships with IT companies here. We're talking to an investor who has textile companies North and South. One Northern Ireland company took a stake in a South African company and is now exporting all over the world.

"It's been my view, having led my mission, that the response is highly positive. Also there is a high degree of information about South Africa," Mr Erwin said in Dublin yesterday.

He also sought to emphasis the extent of change within the South African economy and the opportunities for Irish companies there. "We're a mining economy, an agricultural economy and we produce good wine. We're also a major producer of stainless steel and fero-alloys, more recently," he explained.

He said the textile industry had been pressurised by the government to export and its competitive advantage lay in the medium-ranking fashion sector. There had also been dramatic reform of agriculture - all major price support and subsidies have been removed.

One of the aims of the 30strong visiting delegation is to promote South Africa as a tourist destination. Last year 16,000 Irish people had holidays there. Addressing the trade imbalance is another ambition: last year, Irish exports to South Africa stood at over £308 million, while South African imports to this country were worth just £81 million.

Total South African exports last year were worth $35 to $37 billion.