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Egypt's Minister of Industry and Trade has extended the application of L.E. 150 per ton fee on marble blocks exports for another year. A decree on the issue followed hard discussions with marble exporters in their hunt for quick profits neglecting completely the country's interest in raising value added of products of its mining and quarrying sector. The decree was based on a study prepared by the Ministry's Foreign Trade Sector, which showed that exports were not harmed by applying the said fees contrary to untrue claims of concerned exporters.
The study showed that marble blocks exports during the second half of 2010 (while the fee was L.E. 80 per ton) reached 560,000 tons, while those exports during July/ November 2011 (i.e. after increasing the fee to L.E. 150 per ton) reached 580,000 tons. The study further showed that processed marble exports during the second half of 2010 reached 358,000 tons and they have increased to 430,000 tons during the July/ November 2011 period reflecting the positive impact of raising the fees.
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