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Foreign Trade in Figures

Trade represents 40% of the country's GDP (World Bank). The Egyptian market has been gradually opening up, with the ratification of various free trade agreements, especially the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Petroleum products (oil and gas) are the most traded items, both for imports and exports. In 2023, petroleum and electricity were the main exports (USD 14 billion, 32.9% of the total), followed by ready-made garments (USD 2.3 billion, 5.4%), urea fertilizers (USD 2.1 billion, 4.9%), plastics and articles thereof (USD 2 billion, 4.7%), and natural gas (USD 1.95 billion, 4.6%). Non-oil imports fell 4.8% to USD 55.1 billion, while petroleum and electricity imports dropped 8.5% to USD 17.3 billion. Intermediate goods led with 36.3% of total imports, followed by investment goods (17.9%), fuel (14.6%), and consumer goods (12.5%). Key declines included iron and steel (-6.1% to USD 5.1 billion), plastics (-5.5% to USD 4.8 billion), wheat (-4.3% to USD 3.5 billion), and pharmaceuticals (-1.2% to USD 2.8 billion - data Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics).

In 2023, Egypt's main export partners were Türkiye (9.0%), Italy (7.5%), Saudi Arabia (6.4%), the United Arab Emirates (5.3%), the United States (4.6%), and Libya (4.3%); whereas imports came chiefly from China (15.6%), the United States (6.5%), Saudi Arabia (6.3%), Germany (4.9%), and Italy (3.9% - data Comtrade). In terms of port activity, the Alexandria Port led exports, handling 32% of the total, followed by Cairo International Airport with 14.8% and Suez Port at 14.4%. On the import side, Cairo International Airport accounted for 30.4%, Dekheila Port handled 13.9%, and Ain Sokhna managed 13.5% - data CAPMAS).

The Egyptian economy has a structural trade deficit, which was estimated at 2.2% of GDP in 2023 (from -6.8% one year earlier - World Bank). In the same year, the country’s total exports of goods stood at USD 39.8 billion (-22.2% compared to one year earlier amid lower hydrocarbon prices), whereas imports decreased to USD 78.9 billion (-17.5% year-on-year). As for services, Egypt exported USD 37 billion (+17.3% y-o-y thanks to the positive performance of the tourism sector), importing USD 19.7 billion (-22.1% y-o-y – data WTO). According to preliminary figures from the government, Egyptian exports reached a historic USD 40 billion in 2024.