Is Turkey any closer to setting up an industrial zone in Egypt? The last two days have seen conflicting reports on the potential establishment of a Turkish industrial zone in Egypt, with the Turkish-Egyptian Businessmen’s Association claiming it has made progress on the project, and the Industrial Development Authority (IDA) denying any knowledge of the matter. Association head Atilla Ataseven had said that talks were ongoing with the IDA to acquire a 1 mn sqm land plot for the project, but a top ranking IDA official tells Youm7 that the organization never received any such request.

FEI to lobby against Turkish imports: This comes as members of the Federation of Egyptian Industries’ (FEI) industrial engineering division plan to meet in the coming days to discuss what they say is an unfair competitive advantage enjoyed by Turkish products in the market as a result of Egypt’s freetrade agreement with Ankara. Sources tell Ahram Gate that Turkish-made electronics and home appliances retail 20-25% lower than their Egyptian equivalents. Members said they would demand that incentives offered to Turkish products be scaled back, especially in light of the Lira’s current weakness against the USD.