Thalerngsak Vongsamsorn, minister counsellor for commercial affairs at the Thai embassy in Egypt, expected a 5% trade increase by the end of 2018 compared to 2017, noting, “positive expectations resulted from market stabilisation. Our exports and imports were affected by the Egyptian pound flotation in November 2016, but now the situation is better.” Vongsamsorn told Daily News Egypt that there are a lot of opportunities to expand bilateral trade, adding, “our exported products to Egypt do not only focus on food, but also industrial products like automotive, machinery, electrical appliances, and other products.” Moreover, he said that his country imports a lot of iron and steel from Egypt, whereby the prices are competitive compared to other countries, adding that Egyptian cotton and textile are of a very good quality. On 13 June, DNE reported that total trade between Egypt and Thailand rose by 22.5% in the first four months of 2018 to reach $293.5m compared to the same period of last year. Major export commodities of Thailand to Egypt are automotive and parts, canned tuna, rubber products, machinery and parts, electrical appliances, and chemical products. The main import products of Thailand from Egypt are iron and steel, fertilisers, fabrics, chemicals, garments, cement, and fruits, and vegetables. Thailand is preparing to hold the Egyptian-Thai joint committee in the second half of 2018 in collaboration with the Egyptian government, according to Vongsamsorn.
