Falling apart: Egyptian Libyan trade

Egyptian investors are cautiously eyeing the political tensions erupting in Libya, which have cast a shadow over the economic situation in the country given the cessation of trade between the two countries.

Exporters have expressed fears that the violence which escalated recently in Libya will have negative effects on the export market.

Head of the Libyan-Egyptian Business Council Nasser Bayan said that political tensions in Libya have led to a decline in trade exchange by 5%, which amounted to EGP 8bn last year. He expects a continued decline in economic relations between Egypt and Libya until the situation in Libya stabilises.

Libyan investments in Egypt amount to EGP 3.1bn last year in the fields of industry, agriculture, finance, services, construction, tourism, and telecommunications, according to the Egypt State Information Service (SIS). Meanwhile, Egyptian investments in the Libyan market amounted to EGP 18bn in the oil industry last year.

Sayed Badr, a produce seller in the transit market between Egypt and Libya, estimated an EGP 100,000 daily loss in fruits and vegetable sales due to the poor security condition in Libya.

He added that on a daily basis, the Libyan vegetable market needs 30,000 tonnes of potatoes and tomatoes to be brought in from Egypt at prices ranging from EGP 2,500 to 3,000 per tonne.