Egypt's trade deficit declines 39.7% to $3.74B in March

CAIRO – 16 May 2022: Egypt’s trade deficit declined 39.7 percent March 2022, recording $2.26 billion, compared to $3.74 billion in the same month of 2021, according to the state's statistics agency (CAPMAS).

 

In its monthly bulletin on foreign trade data, CAPMAS elaborated that exports increased 44.1 percent, recording $5.48 billion in March 2022, compared to $3.81 billion during the same month of 2021.

 

 

The bulletin attributed the increase of exports to the rise in the exports of various commodities, such as: petroleum products by 128.6 percent, crude oil by 74.1 percent, fertilizers by 90.8 percent, and  ready-made clothes by 47 percent.

 

 

Meanwhile, exports of some other commodities witnessed a decrease in March such as: plastics in primary forms by 11.4 percent, flat products of iron or steel by 50.5 percent, dairy products by 5.8 percent, fresh oranges by 21.4 percent.

 

Moreover, the bulletin showed an increase of 2.6 percent in imports to hit $7.74 billion in March of 2022, compared to $7.55 billion in the same month of 2021.

 

It attributed the increase in imports' value due to the increase in the value of imports of some commodities, such as: raw materials of iron or steel by 144.9 percent, crude oil by 174 percent, plastics in their primary forms by 6.9 percent, and corn by 7.2 percent.

 

 

The value of imports of some commodities declined during March 2022 compared to the same month of the previous year, such as: wheat by 1.9 percent, organic and inorganic chemicals 32 percent, passenger cars 44.7 percent, refined oils 7.3 percent.