ISDS Case Map
Egypt
The US and Egypt have signed a "Plan for a Strategic Partnership" to develop bilateral trade and investment
US and Egyptian officials signed agreements Wednesday aimed at strengthening trade and investment links between the two nations, a move that comes a week ahead of a trip to Egypt by US President Barack Obama.
Egypt has never been a major trading partner for the US, and after a Free Trade Agreement between the two failed to get off the ground during the previous two administrations, the question now is whether Obama's team will be open to new negotiations or whether Egypt should focus its efforts more narrowly.
Last week, the Mercosur submitted a free trade agreement negotiation proposal to the Egyptian government. The draft document, containing the broad lines for a treaty, was handed over by a delegation from the South American bloc to Cairo
Saudi Arabia has unveiled plans to develop large-scale overseas agricultural projects to secure food supplies, revealing that Riyadh is in discussions with Ukraine, Pakistan, Sudan, Turkey and Egypt.
Spain has expanded its presence in Africa by recently signing trade agreements with Egypt and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The agreement with Egypt includes regular bilateral summits similar to Spain's annual meetings with Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. Both agreements will facilitate the entry of more Spanish companies into Africa.
Egypt on Tuesday said it would explore the possibility of a Free Trade Agreement with India to boost trade and investment between the two countries.
The deal allows Egyptians to export to the US tariff-free as long as they use a certain percentage of Israeli goods. The US initiative is intended to foster peace through trade. Qiz's impact on thawing the political relations is questionable. But, for Egyptian garment producers, it has meant a chance to stand up to the competition posed by Asian producers.
Egypt and Israel have agreed to reduce the percentage of Israeli components that must be included in Egyptian-made products that receive duty-free status when exported to the United States
The impact of the Qualifying Industrial Zones -- a concept proposed by the United States in 1996 to bolster cooperation between Jordan and Israel after the Jordan-Israel peace agreement was signed in 1995 -- remains, after 10 years, difficult to determine. In spite of the tremendous growth of exports to the US market through these zones, QIZs continue to receive mixed reviews and their future is uncertain. Most importantly, the impact of the QIZs on the peace effort has been insignificant, to say the least.
