International Trade Operations in Egypt - Essay Example

?Speaker s Slide I Egypt happens to be the most populated Arab nation. It also happens to be the second most populated African Nation. Most of the population of Egypt is concentrated in the big cities like Alexandria and Cairo and in and around the Delta of the Nile Valley (U.S. Department of State, 2012). The population in the rural areas in Egypt is on the decline because a large number of Egyptian populations are migrating to the urban hubs to assess a better life style and to benefit from the economic development taking place in these urban hubs (U.S. Department of State, 2012). Egypt could be classified to be a well educated nation with its literacy rate being 71.4 percent (U.S. Department of State, 2012). In Egypt education is free right up to the university level and it is compulsory from age 6 through 15 (U.S. Department of State, 2012). The long standing Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak had to resign following large scale political protests in the nation, predominantly led by the young people. In the year 2004, the Egyptian government initiated large scale economic reforms aimed at privatizing the loss making public sector units and rationalizing the tariffs and taxes (U.S. Department of State, 2012). Egypt experienced a commendable economic growth, resting at 7 percent till the year 2008. However, with the onset of the global economic crisis, the economic growth went below the earlier 7 percent mark. Considering the recent, widespread political protests in Egypt, the rate of economic growth could be expected to remain low for the time. However, it could reasonably be assumed that Egypt is gradually moving towards a democratic, parliamentary form of government. With the initiation of the political reforms, the Egyptian economy could favorably be expected to align further with the Global economic trends and Practices. Slide II Egypt is not only the home to a fast growing population, but, the positive thing is that a majority of the Egyptian population comprises of young people and the aged constitute a miniscule of the Egyptian population. It is a fact corroborated by commonsense that young people are usually more open to new ideas, ways of doing things, products and services. Besides, young people are usually more informed about the global trends be they political, economic or culinary. Also considering the large size of the population that mainly comprises of young people, Egypt will have to import more food products to feed it. Going by the fact that most of the Egyptian farming and diary is concentrated in the Nile Valley, which comprises of a meager arable land, not capable of producing enough food to feed the large Egyptian population, it could well be expected that in the times to come, Egypt will have to rely on the outside sources to feed its fast growing population. Also, going by the concentration of young people in the Egyptian population, in the times to come it could safely be assumed that this relatively young population will exhibit a marked preference for foreign foods and culinary delights. In that context, it is a propitious time for the Content Cow Diary to export its products to Egypt. If it forays into the Egyptian markets right now, it could pragmatically expect to consolidate its position in the Egyptian markets, in the times to come. Slide III International trade to a large extent is determined by the free interplay of demand and supply and the economies of scale that varied nations command in the context of specific products. If one looks at the GDP of Egypt, one could easily see that the agriculture sector contributes a meager 14.4 percent to the national GDP (CIA The World FactBook, 2012). In contrast, the other pillars of the Egyptian economy that are industry and services sector contribute 39.5 percent and 45.8 percent respectively to the national GDP (CIA The World FactBook, 2012). Thus, it will be quiet realistic to assume that the agriculture sector in Egypt is not well developed and modernized and could not be expected to churn out enough to be able to feed the large and fast growing Egyptian population. In the times to come, Egypt will have to look for outside sources to accrue the requisite dairy products for its population. Hence, it will be beneficial for the Content Cow Diary to look forward to Egypt as one of the chosen destinations to which it could export its products. Slide IV Importing food and animal products is not something new to Egypt. The nation is already importing food, animal fats and dairy products from the foreign nations. As per the available statistics, in the year 2004, Egypt imported $ 2,280,815,00 worth of food and live animals (Index Mundi, 2012). In the same year, Egypt also imported $ 363,141,000 worth of animal and vegetable fats and oils from foreign destinations (Index Mundi, 2012). This clearly shows that there is a thriving market for dairy products and by products in Egypt. So, Content Cow Diary should take the initiative to expand into the Egyptian markets. Even if it appropriates a small segment of the market for dairy products in Egypt, it would positively translate into impressive revenues. So, now is the right time for Content Cow Dairy to start exporting its products to Egypt. Slide V However, there exist certain factors which demand caution on the part of Content Cow Diary. The inflation rate in Egypt is quiet high. Combined with a high rate of unemployment, it could impact the purchasing power of the young Egyptians which the Content Cow Diary intends to target. So, the company will have to be price conscious and will have to look to it that the products exported by it to Egypt tend to be affordable for an optimal segment of the young population it plans to target. References Egypt. (2012). CIA The World FactBook. Retrieved from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/eg.html Egypt. (2012). U.S. Department of State. Retrieved from http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5309.htm#econ Egypt: Imports by Products Section in US Dollars. (2012). Index Mundi. Retrieved from http://www.indexmundi.com/trade/imports/?country=eg Read More