Roundup: Thriving trade between China and Egypt reflects great cooperation potential: experts

CAIRO, May 9 (Xinhua) -- The significant increase in the bilateral trade between China and Egypt in 2021 has shown the great potential in their mutually beneficial cooperation in all fields, Egyptian experts have said.

The bilateral trade between Egypt and China hit 19.97 billion U.S. dollars in 2021, up by 37.3 percent year on year, according to figures released by the General Administration of Customs of China in January.

Exports from China to Egypt totaled 18.27 billion dollars, up 34 percent year on year, while China's imports from Egypt reached 1.7 billion dollars, up 84.8 percent, the report said.

The numbers showed a remarkable increase in Egypt's exports to China, which demonstrates Egypt's confidence in Chinese products, particularly in the industrial, agricultural, and technological sectors, Ahmed Moaty, a Cairo-based economic expert said.

The booming trade between China and Egypt has significant political and economic implications, as it reflects the progress made in building the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries, he told Xinhua.

The trade growth also illustrates the historically good ties between Egypt and China, as well as their willingness to further promote the bilateral relations, he added.

The trade increase between Egypt and China in 2021 came as the two sides signed a series of cooperation agreements, said Karim al-Omda, an economic professor at the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport.

A herd of Chinese companies are participating in various infrastructure projects in Egypt, contributing to the spike in bilateral trade through increasing imports from China, he told Xinhua.

Egypt's exports to China largely include agricultural products, including fruits and nuts, as well as marble, fuel, mineral oils, distillation products, machinery, mechanical tools, copper and copper-related products, while electrical and home appliances, cars, tractors, bicycles, electronics, industrial fibers, mobiles, accessories, and toys were among the major Egyptian imports from China.

China has retained Egypt's biggest trading partner for the past eight years.

The China-Egypt trade has made great progress in both quantity and quality, said Diaa Helmy, secretary-general of the Egyptian-Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

"Egypt used to focus on importing consumer products (from China), and now has expanded its categories of imports to include important industrial products," he told Xinhua.