‫سفارة جمهورية مصر العربية‬
‫مكتب التمثيل التجارى‬
‫اثينا‬
Fact Sheet
Egypt – Greece
Economic and Trade relations
I. Background information
Location
South East Europe
Capital
Athens
Population
11.8 million.
Political regime
Parliamentary Republic
President
H.E. Mr. Karolos Papoulias
Prime Minister
Mr. Antonio Samaras
Minister of foreign affairs
Mr. Evangelos Venizelos
Minister for Regional
Development & Competitiveness
Mr. Kostis Hatzidakis
Minister of Finance
Mr. Giannis Stournaras
Governing party
Coalition Government of 3 parties: New Democracy.
 Pan-Hellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK).
Opposition parties
 Radical Left (SYRIZA).
 Radical Right (Golden Dawn).
 Independent Greeks.
Parliament composition
300 seats. A party must receive 3% of the total national
vote to qualify for parliamentary seats. Parliamentary
deputies are elected for a maximum of four years.
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‫سفارة جمهورية مصر العربية‬
‫مكتب التمثيل التجارى‬
‫اثينا‬
Economic Indicators:
GDP (billion euro)
GDP real growth rate
%
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
233.2
231
222.1
208.5
193.7
182
-0.2
-3.1
-4.9
-7.1
-6.4
-2.1
GDP: composition by
sector %
3.5%
16%
80%
Agriculture
Industry
Services
GDP- per capita
(thousand euro)
20.8
20.5
19.6
18.5
17.1
n.a
Currency unit &
average of exchange
rate against US
Dollar
1.47
1.39
1.32
1.39
1.28
n.a
Unemployment rate
7.6%
9.5%
12.5%
17.7%
24.2%
27.5%
Inflation rate
4.2%
1.4%
4.7%
3.3%
1.5%
-0.9%
Exports (billion
euro)
23.1
18.3
20.5
23.4
25.4
Main importing
countries
Imports (billion
euro)
Main exporting
countries
27.6
Russia, Germany, France, Italy, Saudi Arabia, China , Netherlands.
34.6
26.2
27.3
29.5
27.9
27.9
Turkey, Italy, Germany, Bulgaria, Cyprus, United States Of America, United
Kingdom.
Direct Investment in
Greece (inflow)
(million US $)
4.499
2.436
3.733
1.823
2
n.a
Direct Investment
abroad (FDI
Outward) (million US
2.418
2.055
9.791
1.788
1.460
n.a
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‫سفارة جمهورية مصر العربية‬
‫مكتب التمثيل التجارى‬
‫اثينا‬
$)
Stock of Foreign
Direct Investment in
Greece (million US
$)
38.119
44.927
35.026
27.433
n.a
Stock of Direct
Greek Investment
abroad
(million US $)
37.232
39.454
42.623
42.938
n.a
Main investing
Countries
Germany, United Kingdom, France, Luxumburg , Belguim Netherlands, Italy ,
United states of America , Switzerland
Main recipient
countries
Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria, Egypt , Poland, Netherlands, Cyprus, United states
of America.
FTA with other
countries
Being an EU member, Greece is committed to all FTAs signed by the EU.
Exports – main
Items
Imports- main Items
food and beverages, manufactured goods, petroleum products, chemicals,
textiles
machinery, transport equipment, fuels, chemical
Foreign Trade Policy (main elements):
Being an EU member since 1981 and a member of the eurozone, Greece is committed
to the EU trade policy, regulations and decisions.
II: Bilateral Trade and Economic relations between Egypt and Greece
a. Contractual Framework Agreements:
Agreement
Signed in
Agreement for cooperation in the field of Maritime Transport
1981
Agreement on Economic and Technical Cooperation
1986
Agreement on Investment Promotion and Protection
1993
Agreement for Cooperation and Exchange of Information
between Export Promotion Centers in both Countries
1999
Agreement for the Establishment of Egyptian Greek Business
2002
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‫سفارة جمهورية مصر العربية‬
‫مكتب التمثيل التجارى‬
‫اثينا‬
Agreement
Signed in
Council
Agreement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation
2004
Agreement on Scientific & Technological Cooperation
2004
Egypt – EU Association Agreement
June 2004
Memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of
Maritime Transport
2005
Memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of
tourism
2005
Agreement for cooperation in the field of customs
June 2006
Agreement for Cooperation in the Field of Insurance and
Reinsurance between the Insurance Federation of Egypt and the
Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies.
2008
b-Trade flow during the period (2009- 2013):
Million Euros
Change %
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
Egyptian Exports
250.6
291.2
653.8
444.1
576.5
29.8%
Egyptian Imports
851.9
208.6
391.5
345.4
593.5
71.8%
Trade Volume
409.5
499.8
1045.
3
789.5
1170
48.2%
Trade Balance
91.7
82.6
262.4
98.7
-37
Item/ Year
Source: National Statistical Service of Greece
 Top Egyptian Exports to Greece according to year 1023:
(Million Euros)
Product
1002
2010
2011
2012
2013
% from total
exports 2013
Mineral Fuel and
Mineral Oils (H.S.27)
113.2
163.5
488.8
318.1
438
76%
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‫سفارة جمهورية مصر العربية‬
‫مكتب التمثيل التجارى‬
‫اثينا‬
Fertilizers (H.S.31)
32.7
24.8
27.9
27.8
32.2
5.6%
Organic chemicals (29)
0.021
0.0003
7.6
17.1
28.5
5%
25.8
22.2
31.8
12.1
21.1
3.7%
Plastic and Products
(H.S.39)
3.8
5.2
7.3
8.2
9
1.6%
Salt, Lime & Cement
(H.S25)
6
5.4
7.3
9.9
6
1%
Iron & Steel(H.S72)
5.7
4.2
5.7
1.6
4.5
0.8%
Other made- up Textile
articles (H.S.63)
5.6
3.8
2.9
3.9
3.8
0.7%
Garments (H.S.61&62)
4.5
4.3
3.4
3
3.4
0.6%
Inorganic
Chemicals(H.S.28)
5.5
1.2
5.9
2.1
3.1
0.5%
Miscellanous Chemical
Products (H.S.38)
2.8
1.9
2.1
2
2.5
0.4%
Wood & articles of
Wood (H.S.44)
2.7
2
3.5
3.2
2.5
0.4%
Aluminum and Products
(H.S.76)
8.9
2.3
3.4
2.6
2.1
0.36%
0.009
19.2
18.7
12.6
2.1
0.36%
Paper & Paper Board
(H.S.48)
2.9
7
4.6
2.1
2
0.34%
Preparation of
Vegetables & Fruits
(H.S.20)
0.3
0.3
0.2
1.9
1.8
0.31%
Carpet and other floor
coverings (H.S.57)
3.6
1.9
2.3
1.2
1.2
0.2%
0.209
1.5
3.9
1.3
0.776
0.13%
Vegetables (H.S.07)
Copper & articles
(H.S.74)
Glass & Glassware
(H.S.70)
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‫سفارة جمهورية مصر العربية‬
‫مكتب التمثيل التجارى‬
‫اثينا‬
 Top Egyptian Imports from Greece according to year 1023:
(Million Euros)
Product
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
Mineral Fuel and Mineral
Oils (H.S.27)
0.863
31.2
230.5
200.7
407
Cotton (H.S.52)
53.3
72
25.2
17.9
64
Salt, Sulphur, earths and
stone, Plastering
material, lime and cement
(H.S.25)
9
Edible fruit and nuts (H.S
08)
0.134
Tobacco and its Products
(H.S.24)
19.1
% from
total
imports
2013
68.6%
10.8%
4.9%
15
0.651
18.2
3
7.3
29
4.4
13.1
18.2
21.7
30.1
11.3
Machinery and
Mechanical Appliances
(H.S.84)
8.6
6.3
8.2
14.9
8.4
Articles of iron and Steel
(H.S73)
24.4
3.9
0.822
2.5
7.1
Plastic and its Products
(H.S.39)
3.7
4.4
4.5
4.9
5.9
Paper & articles (H.S.48)
0.2
4.6
5.4
8.5
5.2
3%
1.9%
1.4%
Preparations of
Vegetables , Fruits , Nuts
(H.S.20)
2.3
3.2
4.4
4.8
5
Articles of iron and Steel
(H.S 72)
6.5
18.3
15.3
6.9
4.3
Miscellanous Chemical
Products (H.S.38)
1.8
1.6
2.5
2
3
Vehicles & Parts and
3.3
3.3
3.1
5.4
2.8
1.2%
1%
0.9%
0.8%
6
0.7%
0.5%
0.47%
‫سفارة جمهورية مصر العربية‬
‫مكتب التمثيل التجارى‬
‫اثينا‬
accessories (H.S.87)
Tanning , Dyeing , Ink
(H.S.32)
2.2
2.6
1.4
2.6
2.8
Electrical Machinery &
equipment (H.S.85)
4.6
3.9
2.4
3.8
2.7
Fertilizers (H.S.31)
0.3
0.6
0.7
2.6
2
Printed books ,
Newspaper (H.S.49)
1.3
1.5
1.2
1.1
1.5
0.47%
0.45%
0.34%
0.25%
Source: National Statistical Service of Greece
c. Investment:
Total Greek investments 
in Egypt (Till 30/06/2013)
Main investment sectors
Main Projects in Egypt
Main GREEK Companies
investing in Egypt
Total Greek investments in Egypt valued $497.8
million in 135 projects.
The Projects are in a variety of fields including:

The Industrial sector – 45 Projects
 The Service sector – 53 Projects
 The Construction sector – 16 Projects
 The Touristic sector – 10 Projects
 The Communication and IT sector –5 Projects
 The Financial sector – 2 Projects
 The Agricultural sector – 4 Project

















Piraeus Bank (Banking)
Michaniki (Tourism)
Thrace Papermill S.A (paper industries)
Edita (food industries)
Eurodrip S.A (irrigation systems)
Alumil (aluminum industries)
Piraeus Bank (Banking)
Eurodrip (irrigation)
Latsis Group(Construction)
Alumil (Aluminum)
Chipita (food industries)
Titan (Cement)
Zeritis Group (Paper industries)
Isomat (Construction materials)
Greek Petroleum (ELPE) (Petroleum & Natural Gas)
Axon (Education services)
Er-Lac (dyes)
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‫سفارة جمهورية مصر العربية‬
‫مكتب التمثيل التجارى‬
‫اثينا‬
 Informer (Information Technology)
 National Bank of Greece (Banking)
Egyptian investments in
Greece
There are no specific Figures available in Greece, though there
used to be one significant investments
- Mr.Naguib Sawiris (Weather Investments Co.) – who was
controlling 50.01% of the shares of Tellas Greece (second
largest fixed line & Internet company in Greece) – bought
the shares of PPC in Tellas for 175 million Euros in August
2007. Also, Weather Investments bought – in April 2007 one of Greece’s largest mobile phone operator , TIM Hellas
for 3.4 billion Euros, and changed the name of the
company to WIND. The two companies were merged into
one entity known as WIND HELLAS (Third largest mobile &
fixed line operator in Greece) that has about 400 branches
around Greece & approximately 5.5 million subscribers.
- Weather Investment was forced to sell its controlling stake
in WIND following the selection of a debt-for-equity bid
from its key creditors to refinance the company by injecting
420 million Euros and writing off debt in exchange of 100%
of company’s shares.
Source: General Authority for Investment and Free Zones – Egypt
d. Economic and technical cooperation:
of  The 7th session of the Joint Committee for Economic and
Technical Cooperation was held in Greece during the period
22-23 November 2010, covering all fields of cooperation
between the two countries.
 Specialized Training Programs in various fields used to be
funded by the Hellenic Aid and were usually organized by the
training center of the National Bank of Greece. During the last
few years courses were offered to Egypt in the fields of
leather products and furniture (for Egyptian SMEs), banking
and financial services, and commercial diplomacy. All
Hellenic external Aids are currently freezed due to the Greek
debt crisis.
Total Value of grants During the year 2007 an amount of 5.07 million euros were
allocated by the Greek Government to Egypt within the
and soft loans
Framework of the Hellenic Development Assistance .This
amount was released during 2007 in the fields of Education,
training, health, environment, and culture(including recreation
Main
Fields
Cooperation
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‫سفارة جمهورية مصر العربية‬
‫مكتب التمثيل التجارى‬
‫اثينا‬
and site preservation) . Currently, no financial assistance is
offered any more due to the Greek debt crisis.
Main Talking Points
1- To follow up the recommendations agreed upon during the 7 th session of
the Joint Committee for Economic and Technical Cooperation which was
held in Athens during the period 22-23 November 2010, and determine the
9
‫سفارة جمهورية مصر العربية‬
‫مكتب التمثيل التجارى‬
‫اثينا‬
2-
3-
4-
5-
67-
8-
9-
suitable time for the 8th session of the joint committee meetings in Egypt
during the 2nd half of 2014.
To emphasize the importance of the Egyptian potato exports to Greece, and
the need not to put any obstacles during the export season might ban the
entry of our exports to Greece whether screening procedures or ports of
entry.
To activate the role of the Greek – Egyptian business council through
holding the first bilateral meetings for businessmen in both countries in
order to explore the opportunities for future cooperation and to boost the
trade and investment relations.
To activate and execute all the agreements and memorandums of
understanding signed between the two countries, as well as to follow up the
draft of the MOU agreed upon between GAFI and Invest in Greece and to
decide a specific date for signing it, with the aim of promoting direct
investments in both countries.
To encourage both the Egyptian and the Greek sides to participate in the
International fairs and exhibitions in both countries, and to discuss the
possibilities of providing mutual facilities for the companies to participate
whether through offering free spaces or reducing the participation fees.
To stimulate the promotion missions and businessmen visits to both
countries.
It is proposed to organize an Egyptian-Greek Forum in cooperation with
EBA & ministry of investment through the participation of businessmen
from both countries to enhance the trade and investment relations.
To explore the means of attracting more Greek investments to Egypt in
light of the facilities and incentives provided by the Egyptian government
to foreign investors, and to exert all the possible efforts to tackle the
problems facing the Greek investments that already exist in Egypt or
willing to invest in the future.
To coordinate and cooperate in the framework of the Euromed (Barcelona
Process) and the Union for Mediterranean, and to explore means of
cooperation in regional projects in both countries.
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