A cargo ship makes its way along the Suez Canal (Photo: Reuters)
Egypt's trade deficit grew 70.9 percent in September compared to the same period a year earlier, according to the latest available trade report by the state-run statistics agency CAPMAS released on Sunday.
The deficit reached LE27.9 billion ($3.9 billion) in September, compared to LE16.3 billion ($2.28 billion) in the same period the previous year.
The trade deficit recorded LE241 billion ($33.7 billion) in the fiscal year 2013/14, up 9.8 percent from the previous year, Central Bank data showed.
Egypt imported petroleum products worth more than $13 billion, and food and grains worth more than $10 billion. During this period, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and the United States were Egypt's main trade partners.
The growth in the trade deficit was driven by a 28.8 percent increase in imports to reach LE42.5 billion ($5.94 billion) and a 12.5 percent decline in exports to record LE14.6 billion ($2.04 billion).
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