• GDP: US $303 billion (2005).
• Main imports: Machinery and equipment, food, chemicals, wood products and fuels.
• Main exports: Crude oil, petroleum products, cotton, textiles, metal products and chemicals.
• Main trade partners: China, France, Germany, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Spain, UK and USA.

On taking power in 1952, President Nasser quickly instituted a Soviet-style command economy that was closed to Western investment. After Nasser’s death, his successor, Anwar Sadat, gradually dismantled the existing system in favour of a policy of infitah (openness) towards investment.

Egypt’s economy underwent rapid growth during the 1970s with the swift expansion of the oil industry, tourism and the Suez Canal. During the 1990s, stern fiscal policies, agreed with the IMF and World Bank, and further market-oriented measures brought the Egyptian economy to its current condition. As of mid 2004, annual growth had fallen to 3%, inflation was about 14%, while official unemployment was 10% (although there is considerable under-employment).

Egypt’s major industries are textiles, fertilisers, rubber products and cement. There are also steel production works and several vehicle assembly plants. The main crops are cotton, rice, wheat, sugar, maize and a range of fruit and vegetables. Expansion of the tourist sector has been briefly hampered by the terrorist activities of Islamic fundamentalists. Agriculture, which relies on irrigation from the Nile, employs one-third of the working population. Foreign aid, especially from the USA, is an important source of government funds.

Egyptian-British Chamber of Commerce in the UK
PO Box 4EG, 4th Floor, 299 Oxford Street, London W1A 4EG, UK
Tel: (020) 7499 3100.
Website: www.theebcc.com

Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce
4 Midan el-Falaky Square, Cairo, Egypt
Tel: (2) 795 1136.

Cairo Chamber of Commerce (address as for the Federation)
Tel: (2) 354 2943.

Cairo International Conference and Exhibition Centre
Nasr Road, Nasr City, Cairo, Egypt
Tel: (2) 263 4631/2.
Website: www.cicc.egnet.net

Egyptian General Company for Tourism and Hotels (Information on Conferences/Conventions)
6th floor, 4 Latin America Street, Garden City, Cairo, Egypt
Tel: (2) 795 7867 or 0603.

The Egyptian State Tourist Office can also provide information on conferences and conventions (see Contact Addresses).

Cairo has many hotels and three large meeting halls (seating up to 2,000 people), which are equipped for use as conference centres. The Cairo International Conference Centre, 12km (7 miles) east of Cairo International Airport, has seating for 2,500 people, with an exhibition hall, banquet hall and comprehensive facilities. There is also a convention centre at Alexandria University, which has a main hall with seating for 2,400.