Trade min. lauds progress in economic ties with Kuwait

CAIRO - 8 November 2018: Minister of Trade and Industry Amr Nassar on Thursday hailed the steady progress in economic relations between Egypt and Kuwait.

Such development in relations reflects the two countries' keenness to elevate bilateral ties in the different fields to higher level, Nassar said.

He made the remarks during his participation in activities of the third meeting of the Egyptian-Kuwaiti Cooperation Council, which was held on the sidelines of the Egyptian-Kuwaiti Cooperation Forum, according to a statement released by the Trade and Industry Ministry.

The minister added that the two states are willing to remove all obstacles to increasing joint investments and easing the inter-trade movement during the current phase, the statement read.

In this regard, he pointed to the key role played by the private sector to foster investment relations between Egypt and Kuwait, the statement noted.

Egypt pays great attention to cementing its economic and trade ties with various world countries, notably Arab countries, through effective participation in the different economic events, he clarified.

He said that the Egyptian-Kuwaiti relations have recently witnessed great momentum at the economic and trade levels, stressing that Kuwait was the third largest Arab trade partner to Egypt in 2017.

The volume of trade exchange between the two countries in 2017 increased by 34% compared to 2016 to hit 1.7 billion dollars, he said.

Kuwait was placed fourth among the largest investing countries in Egypt, with cumulative investments amounting to USD 3.7 billion, he added.

He said that Egypt has developed an ambitious and comprehensive economic reform plan, with a view to realizing sustainable development goals.

Egypt's vision 2030, which comes as part of the economic reform plan, focuses on three main axes that include implementing fiscal and tax reforms and improving the business climate, as well as restructuring the subsidy system.