Lebanon and Egypt to sign MoU to ramp up trade

Published March 7th, 2017 - 07:00 GMT
Marble and granite factory owners in Lebanon have recently staged several rallies against imports of similar products from Egypt and Syria. (Assaf Marble)
Marble and granite factory owners in Lebanon have recently staged several rallies against imports of similar products from Egypt and Syria. (Assaf Marble)

Lebanon and Egypt will sign a memorandum of understanding this month to boost trade ties between the two countries, a statement issued Monday by the Industry Ministry said.

“The two countries will sign a memorandum of understanding on the sidelines of the visit of Prime Minister Saad Hariri to Egypt this month,” said the statement adding that this initiative will boost Lebanese industrial exports to the Egyptian market.

It also noted that the governments in the two countries are currently studying the competitiveness of certain products in Egypt and Lebanon to market them.

The statement was published following a meeting held between Industry Minister Hussein Hajj Hasan, Economy Minister Raed Khoury, Egyptian Industry and Trade Minister Tarek Kabil and Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon Nazih Najjari.

Kabil emphasized the importance of exchange in expertise between Egypt and Lebanon in the field of using technology in marble production while encouraging Egyptian companies to import this product from Lebanon instead of buying it from other countries.

“We also call for removing all obstacles facing the export of Egyptian marble to Lebanon,” he said.

Kabil also said that Lebanese marble manufacturers should be able to participate for free in the international marble exhibitions taking place in Egypt.

Marble and granite factory owners in Lebanon have recently staged several rallies against imports of similar products from Egypt and Syria.

Also, representatives of the marble industry in Lebanon held a conference less than a week ago in BIEL to discuss challenges facing the production of this product.

At the conference, Nazih Najem, head of the syndicate of marble factory owners, called upon the government to stop the random import of all industrial products for three years by imposing taxes on products bought from outside Lebanon, based on a study adopted by the various industries in coordination with the of Industry and Economy Ministries.

“Also, all imports must be limited by the need to obtain licenses and they should be restricted only to factories that are registered with the Industry Ministry,” he said.

 

 

 

You may also like

Subscribe

Sign up to our newsletter for exclusive updates and enhanced content