Egypt saw a trade deficit of $3.30bn in June 2020, down 8.6% on the same period last year, according to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS).
The figures, issued on Sunday as part of CAPMAS monthly “Foreign Trade Data” bulletin, compared to the $3.61bn reported in June 2019.
Egypt’s exports decreased by 7.9% to $2.26bn during June 2020, versus $2.45bn in June 2019. The downturn has been attributed to the decreased value of some commodities, including fresh fruits at 10.5%; ready-to-wear clothing at 2.5%; crude oil at 46.3%; and plastics in primary forms at 10.4%.
At the same time, the value of other exports increased during June 2020. They include various pastries and food preparations increased by 28.0%; dairy products by 29.3%; and items made from plastics by 79.8%.
Moreover, the imports value decreased by 8.3% to $5.56bn in June 2020, versus $6.06bn for the same month of 2019. This has been attributed to the decreased value of some commodities such as: plastics in their primary forms by 1.6%; corn by 2.9%; crude oil by 24.5%; and wheat by 5.3%.
The imports of some commodities, however, increased in June 2020, compared to the same month of the previous year. This included items such as: medicines and pharmaceutical preparations increased by 18.8%; iron or steel raw materials by 3.8%; organic and inorganic chemicals by 1.8%; and soybeans by 118.9%.
