Egypt’s trade deficit widens 54% YoY in July – CAPMAS

Egypt’s trade deficit widened 53.95% year-on-year to $8.04 billion in July 2026, as imports rose by more than 31% while exports edged up by less than 1%, according to data from the country’s statistics agency CAPMAS released Tuesday.

Imports climbed 31.13% to $11.97 billion in July, from $9.13 billion a year earlier. Exports increased 0.58% to $3.93 billion, compared with $3.90 billion in July 2025, CAPMAS said in its monthly foreign trade bulletin.

The increase in imports was led by natural gas, which rose 88.5% year-on-year. Imports of pharmaceutical products increased 40.7%, plastics in primary forms rose 5.3%, and iron and steel raw materials climbed 4.3%.

Other imports declined, including petroleum products, down 13.4%, and passenger cars, down 13.3%. Imports of maize fell 12.8%, while refined oil imports dropped 34.1%.

On the export side, petroleum products recorded the largest increase among the listed commodities, rising 55.1% year on year. Exports of ready-made garments climbed 18.2%, plastics in primary forms rose 6.6%, and assorted food preparations increased 2.4%.

The gains were offset by declines in fertiliser exports, which fell 47.1%, and crude oil exports, down 39%. Exports of pharmaceutical products dropped 17.9%, while refined sugar exports decreased 18.5%.