Egyptian trade ministry to ban rice and cement exports
Spurred by the steady ascent of cement and rice prices here over the past months, the Ministry of Trade and Industry announced it would ban exports of both goods late last week, hoping to staunch further increases and avert the troubles that long-term instability in either commodity's price could provoke.
The ban on rice exports is scheduled to last through September, according to a trade ministry statement. The cement ban, which applies to grey cement and clinker, will also last through September. Egypt blocked rice exports in January, but approved the export of 485,000 tons less than a month later.
