Following closely was the chemical products and fertilizers sector at 19%, reaching $3.8 billion, trailed by the food industries at 15%, amounting to $3.1 billion.
Egypt's non-oil trade balance deficit fell by about 16% to reach $15.9 billion during the first half of 2024, compared to $18.917 billion during the same period in 2023, according to a government document seen by Asharq Bloomberg.
The document showed that merchandise exports increased during the period from January to June by 9.8% to record $19.641 billion, while imports decreased by about 3.3% to record $35.565 billion.
Egypt’s building materials sector led exports, totaling $4.7 billion, constituting approximately 24% of the country's total exports.
Following closely was the chemical products and fertilizers sector at 19%, reaching $3.8 billion, trailed by the food industries at 15%, amounting to $3.1 billion.
Crops made up 14% at $2.7 billion, and the engineering and electronic goods sector held the fifth spot with about 13%, equating to $2.6 billion.
The trade balance deficit saw improvement attributed to a $1.2 billion reduction in imports during the first half of the current year.
Engineering and electronic goods dominated imports with a 30% share and a value of $10.8 billion, followed by the building materials sector at about 18%, totaling $6.8 billion.
Crops' imports accounted for 14%, valued at $4.9 billion, and chemical products and fertilizers at the same percentage with $5.1 billion. The food industries followed with 11%, totaling $3.9 billion.
