Arab Finance: Egypt’s Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Hassan El-Khatib met with Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao to discuss ways to strengthen economic and trade relations between the two countries, as per a statament.

During the meeting, both sides reaffirmed their pride in the long-standing ties elevated to the level of a comprehensive partnership over a decade ago.

El-Khatib expressed anticipation for the upcoming visit of the Chinese Premier to Egypt, viewing it as an opportunity to translate recent discussions into tangible projects and investments.

The minister also underscored the strategic importance of cooperation with China and the need to build on the existing partnership through joint investments.

He highlighted Egypt’s strategic location and its network of trade agreements with global economic blocs, offering Chinese companies the chance to use Egypt as a hub for production and export.

Moreover, he also reiterated Egypt’s commitment to improving the investment climate and enhancing trade competitiveness, aligning with World Trade Organization rules, particularly in trade remedies.

The minister reviewed the outcomes of the ninth session of the Egypt-China joint committee held in December and proposed holding the tenth session in Egypt later this year.

He called for an increase in bilateral trade volume to better reflect the depth of the economic partnership.

For his part, Wang Wentao praised the current $17 billion trade volume, noting that China remains Egypt’s largest trading partner.

He pointed to the TEDA zone as a successful model of cooperation and highlighted major Chinese-led projects in Egypt, including the iconic tower and central business district in the New Administrative Capital, the electric train, and several renewable energy projects.

Wentao also expressed interest in further collaboration in e-commerce, infrastructure, and clean energy, and commended Egypt’s efforts to facilitate Chinese investments.

The two ministers agreed to strengthen cooperation in areas such as electric vehicles, feeder industries, electronics, water desalination, solar panels, and artificial intelligence.

They also reached an agreement to coordinate on organizing an investment promotion forum in Egypt in the near future, alongside enhancing collaboration in supply chains and other sectors.