Türkiye’s exports to Egypt reached an all-time high from January through August with $2.8 billion (TL 51.10 billion), according to an Anadolu Agency (AA) report Tuesday that cited data from the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM).
The country has been taking effective steps to increase exports to Egypt, as the two countries have started to normalize and improve ties.
Turkish companies most recently organized a trade delegation to Egypt with a group of 52 people.
In the January-August period, Türkiye’s exports to Egypt increased by 17% compared to the same period of the previous year. Egypt's share in Türkiye’s exports reached 1.7%, becoming the 15th country to which Türkiye exported the most.
The country’s exports to Egypt increased by $406.6 million in the first eight months of the year on a value basis compared to the same period of the previous year.
In the January-August period, the chemical materials and products sector made the most exports to Egypt. The sector exported $586.1 million to the country in this period.
The chemicals and products industry was followed by steel with $580.7 million, textile and raw materials with $276.4 million, the automotive industry with $269.1 million, and the electrical and electronics industry with $146.5 million.
The sectors in which Egypt showed the least demand were other industrial products with $236,000, olive and olive oil with $477,000, fresh fruit and vegetables with $58,000, fruit and vegetable products with $1.8 million, and tobacco with $5.7 million.
The sectors that increased their exports to Egypt the most in terms of value were steel with $346.2 million, chemicals and products with $205.8 million, cereals, pulses, oilseeds and products with $59.4 million, aquaculture and animal products with $50.3 million and mining products with $21.4 million.
In the January-August period, companies from Istanbul made the most exports to Egypt. In this period, foreign sales from Istanbul to the country amounted to $1.2 billion.
Western Kocaeli province followed Istanbul with $263.6 million, southern Hatay province with $185.1 million, northwestern Bursa with $178.5 million and western İzmir with $172.1 million.
Egypt and Türkiye have not shared ambassadors since 2013 when relations worsened following the ousting of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi by military chief Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, now the country’s president.
Türkiye-Egypt ties have continued at the level of charge d'affairs since 2013. During this period, brief meetings were held between the foreign ministers of the two countries on various occasions.
Recently, however, signs of a possible reconciliation have come from both countries, particularly due to the changing dynamics in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Türkiye-Greece crisis over the region’s energy resources.