Egypt Watch

The Egyptian petroleum trade balance records deficit

Government data showed that Egypt’s petroleum trade balance turned into a deficit on an annual basis during the first quarter of the current fiscal year.

Egypt’s petroleum trade balance shifted from a surplus to a deficit of $101.1 million during the period from July to the end of September, compared to a surplus of $143.7 million during the same period of the previous fiscal year, according to a report by the Central Bank of Egypt on the performance of the balance of payments.

The Central Bank attributed the deficit to the noticeable rise in international oil prices, in addition to the increase in imported quantities. In a related context, it said that the non-oil trade balance deficit rose by 26.1 per cent to record about $11 billion during the period from July to September 2021, compared to $8.7 billion during the same period in 2020.

It also indicated that payments for non-oil commodity imports exceeded the increase in receipts from non-oil commodity exports, as payments for non-oil commodity imports rose by about $3.5 billion, to record about $16.9 billion. The proceeds of non-oil commodity exports also increased by $1.3 billion to record $6 billion.