Page 101 - Benaa.Vol01

Interview

creating a major challenge to lo-
cal producers of building materi-
als. According to Dr. Gamal,
benaa building materials into the local
heavy truck transporting the

market has to pay a good amount
of money varying from one place
to the other … "The fees should
EXPOT COUNCIL BUILDING, REFRACTORY & METALLURGY INDUSTRIES
be unified according to the
weight and type of shipment. But
now, the fees have become a bur-
den because in some cases pro-
ducers endure expenses that go
beyond the actual value of the
shipment. A
unified fee-
Exports
Authority: list should
86% increase be declared
of building throughout
materials the country
exports to secure
meet their obligations. Endors- lar, its activities
ing the federation's contract will have not been affected achieved since fair play be-
last May
thus improve the economics of a because most of the raw tween the
project and decreases the costs components are locally pro- government
which are usually included by duced," the chairman said. He and the pro-
contractors as a security tool to pointed out that the country ex- ducers," Dr. Gamal said.
maintain the project's operation perienced a similar crisis in 2004 Within the same context, Dr.
in case of payment delay,” Dr. …"when the dollar reached Gamal said, the glass industry in
Gamal said. He added that the LE7.30… but a more flexible Egypt is facing a big challenge as
government should ensure the exchange pricing policy was far as the pricing of the natural
availability of financial resourc- adopted for almost a year and gas is concerned. According to
es before endorsing new projects only then the dollar went back him, the government sells a mil-
otherwise the market will suffer and settled at LE5.60; a step that lion gas units for $7 to local en-
from acute cash shortage which could be repeated," he said. A terprises whereas Algeria, Saudi
in turn will have its negative im- fair and more settled dollar ex- Arabia and the Emirates, sell the
pact on the economic activities. change price will help solve the same units for almost a dollar
The dollar shortage and the fluc- country's economic problems which practically threatens the
tuation of its exchange price has and encourage investors to ven- competitive edge of a billion dol-
also been a problem facing the ture into more local projects, he lar local glass exports. Dr. Gamal
building sector…"Despite the added. pointed out that even the govern-
fact that the building materials' Yet the sector still suffers from ment decision to decrease the
sector has to survive such unset- a rather odd problem. The route price to five dollars per unit has
tling exchange price of the dol- fees have become a headache not been implemented as yet.
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