Cairo – Mubasher: Egypt’s balance of trade deficit narrowed by 36.2% year-on-year (YoY) to $2.59 billion in May from $4.05 billion in the same month a year earlier, data released by the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) showed on Wednesday.
Exports
The most populous Arab nation’s exports fell by 42.4% to $1.57 billion in May, compared to $2.73 billion in the corresponding month in 2019.
The decline in exports was ascribed to a decrease in the value of exports of fertilizers by 31.2%, crude petroleum by 44.3%, ready-made garments by 59.0%, and plastics by 47.9%%.
On the other hand, exports of fresh fruits, aromatic oils and resins, and refined sugar surged by 44.1%, 117.5%, and 53.2%, respectively.
Imports
The value of imports also declined by 38.7% YoY to $4.16 billion during May from $6.78 billion.
The decrease in imports was due to a slide in imports of steel and iron ore by 8.1%, organic and inorganic chemicals by 26.9%, plastics by 31.0%, and soy beans by 3.9%.
Meanwhile, the imports of crude petroleum, dairy products, printing papers, as well as buses and minibuses rose by 34.7%, 1.2%, 22.8%, and 101.5%, in that order.
