In the first two months of the new marketing year (2025/2026 MY), which began on July 1, Ukraine exported 1.456 million tons of wheat, which is 28% less than in the same period last season (2.026 million tons), according to APK-Inform.
Egypt became the key importer of Ukrainian wheat, almost doubling its purchases to 699,000 tons and becoming the largest buyer.
At the same time, most other traditional importers reduced their volumes:
Supplies also decreased to:
As of early September, Ukraine had harvested 30.4 million tons of grain crops on an area of 7.2 million hectares, which is about 63% of the total crop.
Earlier, the Experts Club information and analytical center presented a study of Ukraine’s main trading partners in the first half of 2025, where Egypt ranked first in terms of positive balance among all of Ukraine’s trading partners.
“Egypt is an extremely important and profitable trading partner for the country, along with a number of other Arab states. Partnerships with these countries provide the country with currency and somewhat correct the extremely negative trend of recent years with Ukraine’s constantly growing trade deficit,” emphasized Maxim Urakin, founder of Experts Club.
Ukraine maintains a significant positive trade balance with a number of key partners, which partially offsets the deficit in relations with China and EU countries.
The largest surplus in the first half of 2025 was recorded in trade with Egypt — $605.0 million. Spain ranks second with a balance of $515.3 million, followed by the Republic of Moldova — $448.4 million. Positive dynamics are also observed in relations with the Netherlands ($357.6 million), Algeria ($276.6 million), and Lebanon ($243.8 million).
Ukraine also has a high trade surplus with Iraq ($189.0 million), Libya ($133.6 million), Saudi Arabia ($128.4 million), and Kazakhstan ($113.6 million).
“The positive trade balance indicates that Ukraine is capable of competing effectively in international markets, especially in the agricultural sector and metallurgy. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that these markets are vulnerable to changes in the global economic situation, price fluctuations, and political factors,” emphasized Maksim Urakin, founder of Experts Club and economist.
According to him, maintaining a positive balance in relations with the countries of the Middle East and North Africa is a key element of Ukraine’s foreign trade strategy.
“Egypt, Spain, and the countries of the Arab world are stable importers of Ukrainian agricultural products. This is a strategic direction that needs to be developed further, as it creates a safety cushion for the economy against the backdrop of significant import costs,” Urakyn emphasized.
Analysts note that consolidating positions in the African and Middle Eastern markets could become a long-term factor in strengthening Ukraine’s foreign economic balance.
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According to the results of the first half of 2025, Poland remains Ukraine’s main trading partner in terms of export volumes. According to research by Active Group and Experts Club, exports to Poland amounted to US$2.45 billion.
Turkey ranks second with USD 1.71 billion, and Italy ranks third with USD 1.17 billion. Other major partners include: Germany ($1.09 billion), Spain ($976 million), the Netherlands ($919 million), China ($847 million), Egypt ($776 million), Romania ($679 million), and Hungary ($652 million).
“The structure of Ukraine’s exports shows a clear focus on European Union countries. Poland, Italy, Germany, Spain, and the Netherlands together account for more than half of total exports. This indicates Ukraine’s strategic integration into the European economic space,” emphasized Maksim Urakin, founder of Experts Club and economist.
He also noted that Turkey remains a critically important partner for Ukrainian agricultural and metallurgical exports, while China and Egypt are key markets for agricultural products, particularly grains.
“The presence of trading partners such as Egypt and China diversifies Ukrainian exports,” Urakin added.
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Egypt has signed an agreement with China’s Sailun Group to build a car tire plant in the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCEZ) with a total investment of $1 billion, according to a cabinet statement. The construction of the plant will take three years. The first phase is scheduled for completion in 2026.
The plant will eventually produce 10 million tires a year, Reuters quoted the government as saying.
The EZSC is a complex of six ports and four industrial zones located along or near a strategic waterway. The Egyptian government has granted the zone special legal and tax incentives. Meanwhile, the country is investing heavily in infrastructure to attract investors to the EZSC.
On July 23, 2024, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Arab Republic of Egypt to Ukraine, Mr. Barakat Elayti, held a diplomatic reception to celebrate the country’s main national holiday—the 73rd anniversary of the 1952 Egyptian Revolution, which overthrew the monarchy of King Farouk and established a republican system.
The July Revolution marked not only the beginning of Egypt’s liberation from colonial rule, but also sparked a wave of struggle for freedom and self-determination in the Arab world and on the African continent.
The ceremony was attended by guests of honor: heads of diplomatic missions of foreign states accredited in Ukraine, representatives of state authorities, including Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine for International Policy Ihor Zhovkva, Special Representative of Ukraine for the Middle East and Africa Maksym Subkh, Islamic religious leaders, and members of the Egyptian diaspora.
At the beginning of his speech, the Ambassador of Egypt to Ukraine congratulated all those present on this important date in the history of the Arab Republic of Egypt, noting that “this is not only a national holiday—it is a shared moment of remembrance, reflection, and reaffirmation of the values that continue to unite us: freedom, dignity, and sovereign independence.”
“July 23, 1952, is a date engraved not only in the collective memory of the Egyptian people, but also in the broader historical context of the entire Middle East,” he emphasized.
In his speech, the Head of the Diplomatic Mission emphasized the strong relations with Ukraine and expressed his conviction in the friendly nature and positive development of mutually beneficial and multifaceted Egyptian-Ukrainian cooperation.
According to him, relations between Egypt and Ukraine have a long and successful history, “as historical sources show, Ukrainian engineers worked in Egypt as early as the 19th century, participating in the large-scale modernization initiated by Muhammad Ali Pasha.”
Mr. Barakat El-Eity noted that after Ukraine gained independence and diplomatic relations were established between the two countries, the trend of healthy and sustainable development of Egyptian-Ukrainian relations has continued, and bilateral cooperation in all areas has been fruitful.
On July 2, 2025, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a telephone conversation with President of Egypt Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on opening a new era of strategic cooperation.
The ambassador stressed that “peace, justice, and respect for the sovereignty of states are not just ideals, but the foundation of Egypt’s foreign policy.”
“These principles shape our position in international affairs. They determine our firm response to aggression and injustice, whether it be the horrors in Gaza or the ongoing war in Ukraine,” he added.
The diplomat also noted that “Egypt, along with many like-minded countries, is ready to do everything necessary to support efforts to alleviate suffering, stop the horrors of war, and return to the path of dialogue instead of destruction, progress instead of pain, and unity instead of division.”
Greetings on the occasion of the holiday were expressed by the Ukrainian government: Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine for International Policy Ihor Zhovkva, who read greetings from President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and
Special Representative of Ukraine for the Middle East and Africa, Ukrainian diplomat and historian Maksym Subkh.
The Arab Republic of Egypt recognized Ukraine’s independence on January 3, 1992. On January 25, 1992, diplomatic relations were established between Ukraine and the Arab Republic of Egypt.
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In January-June 2024, Ukraine imported 211,692 thousand tons of salt, which is 45.88% less than in the same period a year earlier, when external purchases amounted to 391,186 thousand tons.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SRS), spending on salt purchases on foreign markets in the first half of 2025 decreased by 48.46% to $26.919 million, compared to $52.225 million in the same period of 2024.
The main suppliers of salt to Ukraine in January-June were Egypt, which accounted for 46.09% of supplies, worth $12.407 million, Turkey (17.57% and $4.730 million) and Romania (13.41% and $3.611 million)..
A year earlier, the top three salt suppliers were the same: Egypt (54.89% or $28.668 million), Turkey (17.15% or $8.956 million) and Romania (14.69% or $7.671 million).
As reported, Ukraine exported 710,040 tons of salt worth $28.32 million in pre-war 2021, while in 2022, exports fell fivefold in real terms to 142,038 tons, and revenues fell even more sharply to $3.82 million. The main buyers of Ukrainian salt in 2021 were Poland (39.1%), Hungary (27.4%), and Romania (7.3%). In 2021, Ukraine imported 142,810 tons of salt worth $12.92 million.
After the occupation by Russian troops in April 2022 of the country’s largest salt producer, Artemsol, Ukraine virtually stopped its exports and became a net importer.
The Tereblya salt deposit (Zakarpattia region) resumed salt production in August 2023. The head of the Zakarpattia Regional State Administration, Viktor Mykyta, said that Zakarpattia would be able to provide Ukraine with 100% of its technical and table salt.
The Dolinsky deposit (Ivano-Frankivsk region) plans to resume salt production in the near future. Work is currently underway on the Dolinsky deposit development project, and a thorough environmental impact assessment is being conducted. Specialists from the State Scientific Research and Design Institute of Basic Chemistry “Niochim” are preparing a design solution for a future salt production plant. A special permit for the extraction of rock salt (halite) in 2023 was obtained by the Kharkiv-based company “Planeta Komfort.”
