Egypt’s trade deficit reached $3.07bn in November 2023, compared to $2.92bn in the same month of the previous year, marking a 5% increase, according to the monthly bulletin of “Foreign Trade Data” issued by the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS).
The bulletin attributed the rise in the trade deficit to the decline in export value by 20.6%, which amounted to $3.21bn in November 2023, down from $4.04bn in November 2022. The decrease in export value was mainly due to the lower prices of some commodities, such as ready-made clothes by 4.5%, petroleum products by 23.7%, crude oil by 28.6%, and fertilizers by 59.6%.
On the other hand, some commodities witnessed an increase in export value in November 2023, compared to the same month of the previous year, such as various pastries and food preparations by 26.6%, fresh fruits by 4.2%, flat-rolled products of iron or steel by 324.5%, and carpets and kilims by 12.0%.
The bulletin also reported a drop in import value by 9.9%, which reached $6.28bn in November 2023, down from $6.96bn in November 2022. The decrease in import value was mainly due to the lower prices of some commodities, such as wheat by 41.0%, primary forms of plastics by 1.7%, corn by 5.0%, and soybeans by 14.6%.
However, some commodities recorded an increase in import value in November 2023, compared to the same month of the previous year, such as petroleum products by 19.1%, raw materials of iron or steel by 53.4%, passenger cars by 108.2%, and organic and inorganic chemicals by 0.1%.
