More than 100 Swiss companies are established in Egypt, including Novartis, Nestlé, Holcim (minority stake in Egyptian Cement Company), ABB, Clariant, Bühler, SGS, Ciba Vision, Roche, Hero, UBS, CS-Group, Alexoil.
In 2004, the trade volume amounted to CHF 423 Million and the stock of Swiss Direct Investment in Egypt was CHF 338 Million (end 2003).
The number of tourists from Switzerland increased from 95’614 in 2003 to 132’886 (+39%) in 2004, and the number of nights from 797’265 to 1’304’050 (+64%).
There is a potential for increased cooperation in the textile sector by matching high Swiss technology with Egyptian cotton.
Other areas of cooperation include agricultural products (fruits and vegetables), food processing and life sciences.