Trade deficit shrinks by 23.2% to $2.37B in March 2024: CAPMAS

Cairo – June 2, 2024: Egypt’s trade balance deficit narrowed to $2.37 billion in March 2024, marking a significant 23.2 percent decrease from the same period last year, when it stood at $3.09 billion, according to the latest bulletin from the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS).

According to CAPMAS, exports shrank by 10.9 percent in March, with total exports amounting to $3.57 billion, down from $4.0 billion in the corresponding month of the previous year. This decline was attributed to reduced values of various commodities.

Plastics in their primary forms decreased by 6.7 percent, fertilizers saw a substantial drop of 57.4 percent, iron bars, rods, angles, and wires experienced a slight decline of 1.1 percent, and crude oil decreased by a significant 49.9 percent.

CAPMAS also reported that certain commodities witnessed an uptick in export value during March, including petroleum products, which increased by 130.3 percent, fresh fruits up by 7.2 percent, ready-made clothes rose by 14.2 percent, and pasta and various food preparations grew by 26.8 percent.

The value of imported goods experienced a decrease of 16.2 percent, totaling $5.94 billion in March 2024, down from $7.09 billion in the same month of the previous year.

This decline in imports was attributed by reduced values of specific commodities, such as medicines and pharmaceutical preparations, which decreased by 25.6 percent, organic and inorganic chemicals down by 31.8 percent, plastics in their primary forms decreased by 31.0 percent, and corn reduced by 15.0 percent.

Some imported commodities increased, including petroleum products, up by 44.5 percent, raw materials of iron or steel increased by 17.7 percent, wheat rose by 15.8 percent, and natural gas grew by 12.4 percent.