Minister of Trade and Industry Tarek Qabil ordered a EGP 900 fee be imposed per tonne of exported sugar until the end of 2016.

This decision comes in the framework of the ministry’s dedication to maintaining the current sugar reserves to secure the local market’s needs, Qabil said in a press release on Thursday.

A number of local sugar companies have exported their production to foreign markets in order to benefit from higher prices globally.

There is a large gap between the price of white sugar in global markets and its price in the local market, which prompted some companies to take advantage of the high prices at the expense of the local market’s needs.

The move came within the Egyptian government’s efforts to increase the supply of commodities before the holy month of Ramadan and to ensure price stability in the market.