Egypt saw a 14% decrease in trade deficit during December 2020, according to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS).
In its monthly bulletin of “Foreign Trade Data”, CAPMAS revealed that the country’s trade deficit reached $3.28bn in last December, versus $3.81bn for the same month of 2019.
The country’s exports value decreased by 0.1%, to reach $2.76bn during December 2020, against $2.77bn for the same month of previous year. This was due to a decrease in value of some commodities, such as: petroleum products by 38.3%; crude oil by 0.7%; various pasta and food preparations by 3.3%; and ceramic tiles and sanitary ware by 12.5%
Meanwhile, the exports value of some commodities increased during December 2020, against the same month of previous year, including: ready clothes by 8.0%; fertilisers by 45.3%; and plastics in their primary form by 35.0%.
Egypt’s imports value decreased by 8.1% to reach $6.04bn during December 2020, versus $6.58bn for the same month of previous year.
This was driven by the decreased value of some commodities, including: raw materials of iron or steel by 19.0%; passenger cars by 16.8%; organic and inorganic chemicals by 18.5%; and telephone devices for individuals by 38.2%.
Imports of some commodities increased in December 2020 versus the same month of previous year, including: crude oil by 3.6%; petroleum products increased by 10.2%; wheat by 16.5%; and medicines and pharmaceutical preparations by 13.7%.
