CAIRO — The disclosure of the reasons behind the decline in non-petroleum Egyptian exports during the first five months of 2015 by 20% compared to the same period in 2014 is not only dependent upon official statements. Egyptian newspaper El-Watan News quoted Minister of Trade, Industry and Small Industries Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour on May 2 as saying, “The decline in Egyptian exports is linked to security problems and the fluctuating political situation in the Arab countries.”

Yasser Jaber, spokesman for the ministry, told Al-Monitor that there is a global trade recession, and the relative deterioration in the Gulf Cooperation Council economy, following the fall of world oil prices, has caused them to reduce their imports of Egyptian products.

The Trade Map website, which includes the largest database for international trade, recorded in early 2014 a decline in the importation rates of three Gulf states in 2013. Saudi Arabia saw a decline in imports by 6.75%, while the United Arab Emirates and Oman’s decline stood at 2.92% and 14.7%, respectively. The website also highlighted the decline of Oman’s import rates from Egypt in 2014 by 11.6% compared to 2013. However, the website has yet to display any statistics on the Gulf imports from Egypt, particularly in 2015.

According to Abdel Nour, the political, security and economic vagaries in the Arab countries, including the Gulf, are not the main reason behind the decline in Egyptian exports. This is because the Arab countries are not the top importer from Egypt. Rather, Europe and the United States come first.