Egypt, S. Korea eye stronger bilateral investment, trade ties

Egypt’s Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Hassan El-Khatib met on Wednesday with South Korean Ambassador to Cairo Kim Yonghyon and his accompanying delegation to discuss boosting economic cooperation and attracting more Korean investments.

The two sides stressed the depth of bilateral relations, underpinned by decades of cooperation, and agreed on the importance of strengthening joint efforts in trade and investment.

Minister El-Khatib said the government is seeking to better integrate investment and trade policies to spur growth, citing Egypt’s strategic location, modern infrastructure, skilled workforce, competitive costs and preferential access to global markets through a wide network of trade agreements. He also outlined plans for a unified digital platform to streamline investor procedures and cut customs clearance times to two days.

The minister also outlined plans to launch a unified digital platform to simplify investor procedures, reduce costs and time, and enhance transparency. He noted that customs clearance times have already been shortened, and the target is to cut them further to two days to speed up trade flows.

Ambassador Kim praised Egypt’s reforms and highlighted the success of leading Korean companies such as Samsung and LG in the local market. He also invited the Egyptian minister to visit South Korea to exchange expertise and explore new areas of cooperation.

Attribution: Amwal Al Ghag English

Subediting: Y.Yasser