The total volume of Egyptian exports rose by 9.1 percent in May 2016 to 18.3 billion Egyptian pounds (US$2 billion) versus 16.8 billion pounds in May 2015. The monthly statistics about state's foreign trade released by Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) on Monday stated that 20 commodities seized 44.3 percent of the total exports. The total volume of the 20 commodities recorded 8.1 billion pounds in May 2016 opposed to 7.8 billion pounds a year earlier, marking 7 percent decline. According to the report, exports of ten commodities rose to 3.9 billion pounds in May 2016 compared to 2.8 billion at the same months of 2015, registering 40.8 percent increase. Fresh fruits sector led the list since its exports soared by 109.5 percent to 968.2 million opposed to 462.2 million in May 2015. Following fresh fruits, fertilizers sector exports also hiked by 84 percent to around 460 million pounds in May 2016 versus 250 million pounds in May 2015. Furthermore, Egyptian furniture exports jumped by 24.1 percent in May 2016 to record around 299.8 million pounds compared to 241.7 million pounds in May 2015. In contrast, exports of ten sectors dropped by 30 percent in May 2016 to 4.1 billion pounds from 5.9 billion in May 2015. Exports of Egyptian petroleum sector declined by 51.5 percent in May 2016 to 753.3 million pounds from 1.5 billion pounds a year earlier. The report showed that Egypt's exports of Crude oil decreased to 1.4 billion pounds in May 2016 from 1.9 billion in May 2015, making a 26.8 percent drop. Meanwhile, plastics exports reached around 268.6 million pounds versus 350.7 million in May 2015, registering 23.4 percent decline. Additionally, exports of ready-made clothes sector witnessed a 14.2 percent decrease since they hit 789 million pounds in May 2016 opposed to 920 million pounds in May 2015.
