Cairo seeks to boost trade with Ankara, overlooking political deadlock
Tarek Kabil, Egypt’s minister of trade and industry, said it is not in Egypt’s interest to hinder trade activities with Turkey.
![EGYPT-POLITICS/ Egypt's Minister of Trade and Industry Tarek Kabil attends an agreements signing ceremony with between Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir (unseen) at the El-Thadiya presidential palace in Cairo, Egypt October 5, 2016. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh - RTSS3SL](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/almpics/2017/08/RTSS3SL.jpg/RTSS3SL.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=mwPJzXaa)
CAIRO — The Egyptian minister of trade and industry, Tarek Kabil, told Shorouk News on Aug. 22 that in the first half of 2017, Egypt’s exports to Turkey rose by 30% to $1.07 billion, while Turkey’s exports to Egypt dropped by 50%, reaching $912 million in the same period.
Turkey is one of Egypt's biggest sources of imported clothing, and the trade volume between the two countries reached about $3 billion in 2016 in fields such as engineering, food, energy and agriculture, according to the Egyptian Ministry of Trade and Industry.