Egypt’s Non-Oil Export Outlook in 2023

Updated 2/24/2024 9:00:00 AM

Non-oil exports are one of the main sources of foreign currency for the Egyptian economy. Hence, the Egyptian government has set a plan to boost performance and maximize export revenues by 2030.

In this Factsheet, we will describe the main scene of the international trade in Egypt before digging deeper into the key highlights of non-oil exports in 2023.

Egypt managed to trim its trade deficit by 24.2% year-on-year (YoY) from $48.7 billion in 2022 to $36.9 billion in 2023.
The remarkable fall in the trade deficit was driven by a downturn in non-oil imports, which fell by 14% in 2023 to $72.54 billion from $84 billion in 2022, due to the lack of foreign currency needed for importing commodities.
Despite government efforts to support exporters, including the increase in export subsidy allocation to EGP 28 billion as of fiscal year (FY) 2023/24, exports did not show significant improvements in 2023 as they slightly rose by 0.3% to $35.63 billion.
Egyptian exports were highly concentrated, with the top five exporting sectors accounting for 2% of total exports.
These top sectors, namely building materials, chemicals, processed food, engineering, and agriculture, exported $8.81 billion, $6.54 billion, $5.5 billion, $4.36 billion, and $3.71 billion, respectively.
Türkiye was the top recipient of Egyptian exports in 2023, importing $2.94 billion worth of goods from Egypt, representing 8.2% of total exports. However, trade exchange between the two countries dropped by 7% compared to 2022.
The Arab League was the top regional destination for Egypt’s exports, accounting for $13.41 billion or 38% of the country’s total exports. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Libya acquired the largest share, with imports worth $2.77 billion, $2.2 billion, and $1.76 billion, respectively.
The European Union (EU) came in second spot with $9.5 billion worth of imports, with Italy capturing the lion’s share of $2.1 billion or 6%.
Egypt’s exports to non-Arab African countries reached $2.25 billion, with Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire, and Ghana importing a combined total of $752 million.
Egypt’s exports to the USA hit $1.97 billion, ranking 5^th among all markets importing from Egypt, with a share of 5.5% of Egypt’s non-oil exports in 2023.
Egypt targets shifting towards export-oriented economic growth through launching the “EgyEx Triple 10” strategy to push exports to $145 billion by 2030.
The “EgyEx Triple 10” strategy includes the establishment of 10 specialized export zones across governorates, the development of 10 export industrial clusters, and targeting 10 essential markets to expand market access for Egyptian products.