Egypt-China trade exchange reaches $13.9bln in 2023: CAPMAS

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Egypt - The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) has revealed that the trade exchange between Egypt and China amounted to $13.9bn in 2023, compared to $16.6bn in 2022.

In a statement released on Tuesday, CAPMAS highlighted the economic relations between Egypt and China, coinciding with President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s visit to Beijing. This visit aims to strengthen bilateral relations and expand cooperation in various fields, marking the tenth anniversary of elevating Egypt-China relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership. The statement is part of CAPMAS’s commitment to monitoring the activities and official visits of the President.

According to CAPMAS, Egyptian exports to China reached $909m in 2023, down from $1.9bn in 2022. Egyptian imports from China totalled $12.9bn, compared to $14.8bn in 2022.

The main commodity groups exported by Egypt to China in 2023 included mineral fuels, oils, and their distillation products worth $414m; articles of stone and cement worth $116m; fruits worth $78m; machinery and electrical appliances worth $31m; and copper and its products worth $27m.

Conversely, the key commodities imported by Egypt from China in 2023 were machinery and electrical appliances worth $4.3bn; iron and steel worth $1.2bn; synthetic textile fibres worth $1.1bn; organic chemical products worth $790m; and plastics and their products worth $773m.

CAPMAS also reported that Chinese investments in Egypt reached $956.7m in FY 2022/2023, up from $563.4m in FY 2021/2022. Meanwhile, Egyptian investments in China were valued at $208.4m, compared to $126.5m in the previous fiscal year.

The remittances from Egyptians working in China amounted to $19.5m in FY 2022/2023, an increase from $13.2m in FY 2021/2022. In contrast, remittances from Chinese workers in Egypt were $3.5m, down from $4.1m.

According to CAPMAS, Egypt’s population was 106.4 million in May 2024, while China’s population stood at 1.4 billion for the same period. The estimated number of Egyptians residing in China was 6,600 as of the end of 2022.