Trade and Industry Minister: Egypt committed to supporting investment partnership with South Korea

The Egyptian government is committed to supporting and promoting investment partnership and dialogue mechanisms between Egyptian and South Korean companies, Trade and Industry Minister Tareq Qabil said.

Speaking at the Egyptian-South Korean business forum on Thursday, Qabil pointed out to potential fields for cooperation between the two countries, such as new and renewable energy, transport, automotive components manufacturing, technology transfer and construction.

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi's visit of South Korea in March has helped open new aspects in economic ties, he said.

Egyptian-South Korean economic relations have been remarkably growing as South Korean investments in Egypt are estimated at $375 million, he said.

South Korean companies have achieved great success in the Egyptian market in different fields, including electronics, engineering, construction and energy, Qabil added.

Egypt is committed to the free market, encourage private sector and foreign investments and develop the economy's infrastructure, he added.

The Egyptian trade minister called on the South Korean business community to pump more investments in the Egyptian market as Egypt seeks to become a base for South Korean investments in Africa and the Middle East in light of the Suez Canal Corridor Development Project, which, he says, was a distinguished model for attracting investments from different countries.

The volume of trade exchange between the two countries stood at $2.4 billion in 2015, with Egyptian exports making only $218.4 million and imports $2 billion, requiring more efforts to achieve a balance in this regard, he said.

The government has taken many steps in the past period to develop the economic performance, such as rationalizing subsidy, issuing a new law on the added value tax and amending the law on offers and tenders, he noted.

The government also resolved problems related to allotting and pricing lands and issuing licenses for industrial institutions, he said, pointing out to the mega national projects it has been adopting including the economic zone of the Suez Canal and building new energy stations, ports and cities.

The government is seeking through reform measures to reach a growth rate of 6% by the end of FY 2018/2019 in tandem with reducing the state budget deficit to 8.5% of the gross domestic product, he said.