According to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS), Egypt experienced a significant reduction in its trade balance deficit. In June 2023, the deficit dropped by 47.7 percent to $2.32 billion, a notable decrease from $4.43 billion in June 2022. The trade balance deficit also decreased on a month-on-month basis, going down from $3.74 billion in May of the same year.
The decline in the value of exports contributed to this improvement, with exports decreasing to $2.91 billion in June, marking a 27.6 percent decline compared to $4.02 billion in the previous year. CAPMAS attributed this decrease to a 12.7 percent drop in crude oil exports and a 32 percent decline in fresh fruit exports.
Imports also saw a significant decline, reaching $5.23 billion in June, down by 38.1 percent from $8.45 billion in June 2022. This was mainly due to a decrease in imports of petroleum products, wheat, and steel. Petroleum and wheat imports specifically dropped by 37.7 percent and nine percent, respectively. However, there was an increase in natural gas imports, which surged by 33.5 percent during the same period.
In May 2023, Egypt’s trade balance deficit recorded $3.74 billion, reflecting a 4.3 percent increase compared to $3.57 billion in the corresponding month of the previous year.
Read more: Egypt faced with potential $1.4 bn loss in trade exchange
Impressive growth
During a roundtable discussion involving food industry companies, Ahmed Samir, Egypt’s minister of trade and industry, said the total volume of food industry exports for the first seven months of 2023 amounted to $2.635 billion, showcasing a notable increase of 10 percent compared to $2.384 billion during the same period in 2022.
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