Egypt and China Sign Agreement To Expand Industrial Investment And Enhance Bilateral Trade

The presidents of the two countries held discussions that included exploring ways to settle trade in local currencies

This came on the sidelines of the China-Arab Cooperation Forum, in which Beijing hosts a wide group of Arab leaders, including the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi.

The two countries are also seeking to expand Chinese industrial investment in Egypt, including the manufacturing of electric cars, and promote more balanced bilateral trade, according to the statement issued by the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

The two countries agreed on the possibility of allowing more high-quality Egyptian products to enter the Chinese market, facilitating the entry of Chinese production factors into Egypt to produce final products, exploring the use of the two countries’ local currencies for commercial settlement, and encouraging Chinese tourists to travel to Egypt, in addition to encouraging China to make direct investment. In Egypt in the field of hotel construction and management; And enhancing cooperation in the fields of journalism, culture, science, artificial intelligence and academic fields.

Chinese projects in Egypt

China has participated in building a number of huge economic projects in Egypt in the fields of infrastructure, transportation, railways, shipbuilding, construction, investment, and space sciences, including participation in the construction of the central business district in the New Administrative Capital, the construction of the electrified railway line in the 10th of Ramadan City, and investment in the Economic and trade cooperation, launching the Egypt 2 satellite, and others.

In addition, the two sides strengthened financial cooperation, with the renewal of the local currency swap agreement.

Egypt recently issued a series of panda bonds in China, and also joined the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the New Development Bank, and became a member of the BRICS group during 2024.

Agreements between China and the Middle East

Chinese relations in the region are growing. The most recent was yesterday when the Lenovo Group, headquartered in Beijing, announced a deal to sell convertible bonds worth $2 billion to the Saudi Public Investment Fund and build research and production facilities in the Kingdom.

Saudi Aramco is also in talks to buy a $1.5 billion stake in a Chinese petrochemical company, while the Chinese automaker FAW Group is participating in an effort to manufacture electric cars in Egypt.