Egypt's trade deficit recorded $2.69bn during March 2021, compared to $3.59bn for the same month of the previous year, a decrease of 25.2%. The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) issued, on Sunday, its monthly bulletin of foreign trade data for March 2021. According to CAPMAS, the value of exports increased by 43.5%, reaching $3.41bn during March 2021, compared to $2.38bn in the previous year. This was driven by the increase in the value of exports of some commodities, the most important of which are: medicines and pharmaceutical preparations, which increased by 54.2%; ready-made clothes, which increased by 49.3%; pasta and miscellaneous food preparations, which increased by 18.4%; and potatoes, which increased by 1.1%. The value of exports of some commodities decreased during March 2021 compared to the same month of the previous year. The most important of these were: oranges, which decreased by 72.4%; fresh fruits, which decreased by 71.4%; fertilisers, which decreased by 40.5%; and dairy products, which decreased by 1.7%. The value of imports also increased by 2.2%, reaching $6.10bn during March 2021, compared to $5.97bn in the same month of the previous year. This is due to the increase in the value of some commodities' imports, the most important of which are: petroleum products, which increased by 92.5%; passenger cars, which increased by 73.9%; and medicines and pharmaceutical preparations, which increased by 9.7%. Meanwhile, the value of imports of some commodities decreased during the month of March 2021 compared to the same month of the previous year. The most important of these are: wheat by 48.5%; raw materials of iron or steel by 25.9%; crude oil by 20.8%; and meat by 7.4%.
