Egypt’s exports of readymade garments grew 4.4 per cent during the first half of 2019. The US’ imports of readymade garments from Egypt rose by 19 per cent. In addition, Egypt’s readymade garment exports to Arab countries surged by 24 per cent. Readymade garments exported by Egypt to Europe dropped by seven per cent while readymade garments exported by Egypt to African countries plunged by 60 per cent.

In June 2019, readymade garment exports from Egypt increased by 11 per cent compared to June 2018. Egypt’s garment exports go mainly to the US, Turkey, Spain, Britain, North Ireland, Germany, Italy, France, Saudi Arabia, Belgium and the Netherlands. Egypt wants to have stronger trade relations with Africa. Steps include taking part in international exhibitions in the African continent and setting up an Egyptian-African free trade zone. Egypt’s main exports to Africa are engineering industries, pharmaceuticals, chemical garments, food industries, and construction materials. Egypt wants to increase exports to the African continent by 35 per cent in 2017. The main countries Egypt is interested in are Kenya, Zambia and Ivory Coast. However, working to make Egypt a leading international trade center in the Middle East requires work to increase the capacities of Egyptian ports in order to attract more container ships as well as working on the development of logistics capabilities and infrastructure to support this trend.