Hottest Products to Import From Egypt in 2024
Below are the hottest products to export from Egypt, with large growth potential:
- Cotton ($522.96 Million in 2023)
- Jewelry ($1.529 billion in 2023)
- Plastics (US$1.75 Billion during 2023)
- Food Exports (US$5.1 Billion during 2023)
- Ceramics (US$298 Million in 2023)
- Essential Oils, Perfumes and Cosmetics (US$620.99 Million during 2022)
A slew of positive export data has been released for 2023, showing huge demand for Egyptian products worldwide. A Egyptian-British trade agreement signed following Brexit has been significant for both countries so there are some excellent opportunities for a foreign importer.
Egyptian Exports Reach Their Highest Level Ever in 2023
Egypt’s total exports surged 18.3% year-on-year (YoY) during 2023, exports jumping to $51.6 billion in 2023, compared to $43.6 billion in 2022.
Last year’s figure marks the highest value ever in the history of Egyptian merchandise exports.
Turkey topped the list of countries importing Egyptian products with a value of $4 billion, followed by Spain with $3.7 billion, Italy with $3.4 billion, and Saudi Arabia with $2.5 billion.
Exports to the US reached $2.446 billion compared to $1.618 billion, yet another significant increase of 51%.
Egypt’s exports to the UK increased 46.2% year-on-year, taking advantage of the Egyptian-British trade agreement, signed by the two countries following Brexit.
If you’re looking for some ideas to import from Egypt and sell, here’s our 6 hottest ideas for 2023:
Cotton Products
Egypt is famous for its highest quality cotton around the world. Turkey and India import cotton from Egypt in order to produce high quality products made of 100% Egyptian Cotton for the worldwide demand.
Fabric production includes fine Egyptian cotton fabrics, shirting, fabrics for trousers/shorts, worsted wool fabrics, denim, fleece, jersey, flat/woolen knits, technical fabrics, and more. Apparel production includes active sportswear, outerwear, underwear, suits, socks, infant wear etc. Production of made-ups includes a wide variety of bed, bath, and table linens, kitchen accessories etc.
Perhaps one of the most in-demand products are luxury 100% Egyptian cotton bed sheets and bedware.
Egypt’s cotton industry is forecast to rise by 7% for the year beginning August 2023 to July 2024, the U.S. agriculture department said late Monday.
Egyptian Jewelry
Egypts jewelry market is exploding and the potential for excellent returns on investment for those willing to source good suppliers and export to buyers around the world are excellent.
There’s plenty of room in the UK market still and well worth exploring.
Egypt’s exports of gold, jewelry, and precious stones increased by 46% during the period in 2023, to reach $1.529 billion, compared to $1.044 billion during the same period in 2021.
Plastics
Since the revolution in 2011 a number of sectors, especially tourism, have slowed down, however this has not been the case with the plastics industry, which includes finished products.
Egypt Exports of plastics was US$1.75 Billion during 2023, according to the United Nations COMTRADE database on international trade. The plasticware industry has become an important part of Egypt’s local manufacturing over the past ten years as a result of relying on plastic materials instead of other items like glass and metals.
Food Exports
Food imports to Europe is a golden opportunity for Egyptian food imports and remains one of the most stable markets offering the highest prices.
Egypt exports of vegetable, fruit, nut food preparations was US$539.86 Million during 2022, adding to a combined total of food exports of $5.1 billion in 2023.
Europe needs products that are low in sugar and packaging for European standards should be considered. Europe is more interested in buying food products which are in glass containers and tetra packs.
It’s important to understand import requirements with food and fresh fruits as of course there will be a limited shelf life.
Ceramics
Egypt intends to turn itself into a regional hub for manufacturing and exporting ceramics, in light of the availability of energy sources, raw materials and qualified labor.
Egypt Exports of ceramic products was US$298 Million during 2023.
Egypt has a rich history of manufacturing ceramics and it’s expected for this industry to grow significantly.
Essential Oils, Perfumes and Cosmetics
80% of the world’s natural jasmine products, come from Egypt, where specialists in this ancient art extract the aromatic oils from a profusion of flowers, leaves, roots and herbs and export them to perfumers in Paris, London, New York and even Moscow.
Perfumes are a huge export market still to be tapped and the use of essential oils is becoming a very, very popular natural alternative to traditional perfumes.
Egypt exports of essential oils, perfumes, cosmetics, toiletries was US$620.99 Million during 2022 and is still a young market for anyone wanting to take advantage of what is sure to be lucrative with the right suppliers and buyer markets.
How To Import From Egypt
4 Steps To Success
If you’re now thinking to get involved in the import export world, I highly recommend it! Below is my personal testimonial of my experience, working 35+ years in import export. I’ve met some many great people, enjoyed my travels around the world and the satisfaction of negotiating deals and moving products around the world has been fantastic.
If the ideas above have inspired you, I recommend you take the next three steps.
Step 1: Sourcing Your Products
Once you’ve decided on some products, you’ll have to source where to buy them, export documentation, import documentation, whether you will need a import license and practical shipper’s knowledge. Finding sellers of your products is also half the fun. If you’re in a position to travel and explore, do it! It’s a great opportunity to expand your horizons. Not so easy in these times of a global pandemic but eventually we’ll be able to travel again.
If you can’t travel, there’s always Google, AliBaba and AliExpress. This can be a great place to start. For more ideas and an much more in-depth look into sourcing products, check out our blog in sourcing products internationally.
It can also be useful to call the Egyptian Embassy or Egyptian Consulate and ask for a list of suppliers for the product your looking for.
Step 2: Finding Buyers
Perhaps the biggest question is inevitably, how do I find buyers for my products?
This is without doubt the most common question that I’m asked. Well, the good news is, there’s more than one way to do this. The bad news is, there’s no “easy” way. It’s all going to take some hard work and perseverance but it can most certainly be done and some good profits are no doubt waiting for you.
For my biggest hints and tips after a lifetime in commercial buying and selling check out our blog post on finding buyers.
Step 3: Understand the Basics
You’re going to need to understand at a minimum, the basics of import and export. Don’t jump in and start buying products, hoping to sell them by crossing your fingers. You’ll lose money, time and cause yourself a lot of stress.
To start, have a read of our blog post, How To Start an Import Export Business. It’s only the bare minimum but it will give you an idea of what you need to start thinking about and you’ll pick up some handy tips that I learned over the year.
Step 4: Import Export Training Courses Online
If you’re still sold on the idea of international trade, I can only advise you to educate yourself. Our online import export courses are taught with a series of pre-recorded videos so you can start any time, study at your own pace and there’s no deadline to complete.
Our courses teach you the practical knowledge you’ll need to know to trade successfully, confidently whilst maximising your profits. Taught by Alan Bracken, with 35+ years of commercial experience in logistics, he skips all the theory you’ll never need to know but teaches you the practical side of how to move your goods around the world.
Check out our reviews on TrustPilot to see just how our courses have benefited our students.
