Egypt’s Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) revealed, on Monday, that French investments in Egypt increased 17.9% during fiscal year (FY) 2019/20.
The increase meant that the investments were recorded at $349m compared to $296.1m during FY 2018/19.
The value of trade exchange between Egypt and France recorded $2.2bn in 2020 compared to $2.4bn in 2019, a decrease of 6.9%.
This came as the value of Egyptian exports to France reached $530.5m in 2020 compared to $654.3m during the year 2019, reflecting a decrease of 18.9%.
Meanwhile, the value of Egyptian imports from France recorded $1.70bn in 2020 compared to $1.75bn in 2019, a decrease of 2.4% due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which affected global trade.
Machinery and electrical appliances ranked first on the list of the 10 most important commodity groups that Egypt exported to France during 2020. This segment saw exports amounting to $138.2m, whilst fertilisers accounted for $134.5m, and organic chemical products accounted for $55.4m.
Meanwhile, other Egyptian exports to France saw: clothing account for $40.6m, plastics account for $38.3m, essential oils account for $14.5m, vegetables and plants account for $13.4m, fruits account for $10.2m, glass account for $8.9m, and aluminium account for $8.3m.
Pharmaceutical products ranked first on the list of the 10 most important commodity groups that Egypt imported from France during the year 2020.
Whilst their imports amounted to $290.5m, cereals ranked second for $207.5m, followed by cars, tractors, bicycles and parts with $166m. Additionally, boilers and machinery accounted for $150.1m, electrical appliances accounted for $108.7m, and various chemical products accounted for $100.9m.
Meanwhile, plastics accounted for $64.7m, organic chemical products accounted for $64.2m, milk and products, eggs, and honey accounted for $54.3m, whilst fuel, mineral oils and products of their distillation accounted for $49.8m.
The value of remittances sent back to the country by Egyptians working in France amounted to $112.8m during FY 2018/19, compared to $129.1m during FY 2017/18, reflecting a decrease of 12.6%.
Meanwhile, the value of remittances of French workers in Egypt recorded $11.6m in FY 2018/19 compared to $7m during FY 2017/18, an increase of 65.7%.
