Cairo – Mubasher: Egypt's trade deficit fell by 32.2% to $3.22 billion in October 2019, compared to $4.75 billion in the same period in 2018, according to a statement by the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) on Monday.
Exports
The North African nation's exports reached $2.39 billion in October, down 4.4% from $2.5 billion in the corresponding period a year earlier, as shown by the monthly data of foreign trade.
This decline was due to the decrease in the value of some exports, led by petroleum products with 31.1% and crude oil with 17.2%, in addition to fertilizers and plastics in their primary form which dropped by 20.1% and 4.15%, respectively, the CAPMAS remarked.
On the other hand, the value of some exports rose in October, mainly ready-made garments, fresh fruits, dairy products, and textile materials with 8.3%, 10.2%, 10.9%, and 10.8%, respectively.
Imports
As for the imports, they slid by 22.6% to $5.61 billion in October 2019 from $7.25 billion in the same period in the prior year.
This was the result of a drop in the value of some imports, including petroleum products, cars, as well as iron and steel raw materials which were down by 23.5%, 4.0%, and 36.4%, respectively.
Meanwhile, some imports grew in October, including corn, meat, soy beans, and fresh apples with 3.6%, 10.2%, 49.6%, and 35.3%, respectively.
