02 Sep 2021

The Minister of Trade & Industry announced that there will be a huge reduction in customs duties on around 7,000 goods traded between Egypt and the Mercosur countries. The reduction is effective starting today. This comes in light of the free trade agreement signed between Egypt and Mercosur in September 2017. Since then, Egyptian exports to Mercosur have skyrocketed by 115%. The agreement aims to eliminate customs duties on 90% of traded goods by the year 2026.

Customs duties on half of the 7,000 goods have now been reduced by 63% since the agreement came into effect, while the other half have been reduced by 50%. Around the same time last year, roughly 600 goods were deemed completely customs-free. The exported commodities that will benefit the most from these reductions are textiles, lint, and engineering goods. The Mercosur’s full members are Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Mercosur associate countries are Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, and Suriname.

(Source: Egypt Today (English), Sada el-Balad (English), Amwal al-Ghad, Economy Plus Me, Veto)