Egypt is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia by a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. Egypt's economy depends mainly on agriculture, media, petroleum imports, natural gas, and tourism; there are also more than three million Egyptians working abroad, mainly in Saudi Arabia, the Persian Gulf and Europe. The completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1970 and the resultant Lake Nasser have altered the time-honoured place of the Nile River in the agriculture and ecology of Egypt. A rapidly growing population, limited arable land, and dependence on the Nile all continue to overtax resources and stress the economy.[ citation needed ]
For further information on the types of business entities in this country and their abbreviations, see "Business entities in Egypt".
This list includes notable companies with primary headquarters located in the country. The industry and sector follow the Industry Classification Benchmark taxonomy. Organizations which have ceased operations are included and noted as defunct.
Name | Industry | Sector | Headquarters | Founded | Notes | Status | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
ABU QIR Fertilizers and Chemicals Industries Company | Basic materials | Commodity chemicals | Abu Qir | 1976 | Agriculture, nitrogen fertilizers | S | A |
Air Arabia Egypt | Consumer services | Airlines | Alexandria | 2009 | Low-cost carrier | P | A |
Air Cairo | Consumer services | Airlines | Cairo | 2003 | Low-cost carrier | P | A |
Air Memphis | Consumer services | Airlines | Cairo | 1995 | Charter airline, defunct 2013 | P | D |
Air Sinai | Consumer services | Airlines | Cairo | 1982 | Airline | S | A |
Al Watany Bank of Egypt | Financials | Banks | Cairo | 1980 | Bank, part of National Bank of Kuwait | P | A |
Al-Mansour Automotive | Consumer goods | Automobiles | Alexandria | 1975 | Vehicles | P | A |
AlMasria Universal Airlines | Consumer services | Airlines | Cairo | 2008 | Private airline | P | A |
AMC Airlines | Consumer services | Airlines | Cairo | 1992 | Charter airline | P | A |
Arab American Vehicles | Consumer goods | Automobiles | Cairo | 1978 | Vehicles | S | A |
Arab Contractors | Industrials | Heavy construction | Cairo | 1955 | Construction | S | A |
Bahgat Group | Conglomerates | - | Cairo | ? | Electronics, furniture, medical equipment | P | A |
Bank of Alexandria | Financials | Banks | Alexandria | 1957 | Bank | P | A |
Banque du Caire | Financials | Banks | Cairo | 1952 | Bank | S | A |
Banque Misr | Financials | Banks | Cairo | 1920 | Bank | S | A |
Bavarian Auto Group | Consumer goods | Automobiles | Cairo | 2003 | Egyptian arm of BMW (Germany) | P | A |
BiscoMisr | Consumer goods | Food products | Cairo | 1957 | Baked goods | P | A |
Cairo Aviation | Consumer services | Airlines | Cairo | 1998 | Airline | P | A |
Cairo Electric Railways and Heliopolis Oases Company | Industrials | Railroads | Cairo | 1960 | Transportation | P | A |
Central Bank of Egypt | Financials | Banks | Cairo | 1961 | Central bank | S | A |
Challenger LTD | Oil & gas | Exploration & production | Cairo | 1991 | Drilling | P | A |
Cook Door | Consumer services | Restaurants & bars | Cairo | 1988 | Fast food | P | A |
Corona | Consumer goods | Food products | Alexandria | 1919 | Confections | P | A |
Daily News Egypt | Consumer services | Publishing | Giza | 2005 | Newspaper | P | A |
Egyptian Electricity Holding Company | Utilities | Conventional electricity | Cairo | 2000 | Power | S | A |
Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company | Oil & gas | Exploration & production | Cairo | 2001 | State-owned oil and gas holdings, owned by Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation | S | A |
Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation | Oil & gas | Exploration & production | Cairo | 1956 | State petroleum | S | A |
Egypt Post | Industrials | Delivery services | Cairo | 1865 | Post, shipping | S | A |
EgyptAir | Consumer services | Airlines | Cairo | 1933 | Airline, state flag carrier | S | A |
EgyptAir Cargo | Industrials | Delivery services | Cairo | 2002 | Cargo airline, part of EgyptAir | S | A |
EgyptAir Express | Consumer services | Airlines | Cairo | 2006 | Regional airline, part of EgyptAir | S | A |
Egyptalum | Basic materials | Aluminum | Nag Hammadi | 1972 | Aluminum | S | A |
Egyptian International Beverage Company | Consumer goods | Brewers | Cairo [1] | 2003 | Brewery | P | A |
Egyptian National Railways | Industrials | Railroads | Cairo | 1854 | Railway | S | A |
Elsewedy Electric | Conglomerate | Consumer goods | Cairo | 1938 | Consumer electronics | P | A |
eSpace | Technology | Software | Alexandria | 2000 | Technology consulting, software development | P | A |
EUC Construction – El Hazek | Industrials | Heavy construction | Cairo | 1979 | Construction | P | A |
Ezz Steel | Basic materials | Iron & steel | Cairo | 1982 | Steel | P | A |
General Motors Egypt | Consumer goods | Automobiles | Cairo | 1983 | Egyptian arm of General Motors (US) | P | A |
Ghabbour Group | Consumer goods | Automobiles | Cairo | 1960 | Automobiles | P | A |
Hassan Allam Holding | Industrials | Heavy construction | Cairo | 1975 | Construction | P | A |
Herrawi Group | Consumer goods | Food products | Alexandria | 1981 | Produce | P | A |
HSBC Bank Egypt | Financials | Banks | Cairo | 1982 | Bank, part of HSBC (UK) | P | A |
Juhayna Food Industries | Consumer goods | Food products | Cairo | 1983 | Dairy products and juice | P | A |
Manufacturing Commercial Vehicles | Industrials | Commercial vehicles & trucks | Cairo | 1994 | Commercial vehicles | P | A |
Microsoft Egypt | Technology | Software | Cairo | 1995 | Part of Microsoft (US) | P | A |
Midwest Airlines | Consumer services | Airlines | Cairo | 1998 | Charter airline | P | A |
Mo'men | Consumer services | Restaurants & bars | Cairo | 1988 | Fast food, sandwiches | P | A |
Nasr | Consumer goods | Automobiles | Cairo | 1960 | State-owned, vehicles | S | A |
National Bank of Egypt | Financials | Banks | Cairo | 1898 | Bank | S | A |
Nile Air | Consumer services | Airlines | Cairo | 2006 | Airline | P | A |
Nilesat | Telecommunications | Mass telecommunications | Cairo | 1998 | Satellites | S | A |
Olympic Group | Consumer goods | Durable household products | Cairo | 1963 | Appliances | P | A |
Orange Egypt | Telecommunications | Mobile telecommunications | Cairo | 1996 | Formerly Mobinil, part of Orange S.A. (France) | P | A |
Orascom Construction | Industrials | Heavy construction | Cairo | 1950 | Construction | P | A |
Petroleum Air Services | Oil & gas | Oil equipment & services | Cairo | 1982 | Oil industry support | S | A |
SEGAS LNG | Oil & gas | Exploration & production | Damietta | 2001 | Gas liquied complex | P | A |
Shotmed Paper Industries | Basic materials | Paper | Giza | 2005 | Paper | P | A |
SICO Technology | Consumer goods | Consumer electronics | Cairo | 2003 | Mobile phones, tablets, telecommunication equipment | P | A |
Smart Aviation Company | Consumer services | Travel & tourism | Cairo | 2007 | Corporate travel | P | A |
Starworld | Consumer goods | Clothing & accessories | Alexandria | 1990 | Apparel | P | A |
Suez Canal Container Terminal | Industrials | Transportation services | Port Said | 2000 | transportation terminal | P | A |
Suez Steel | Basic materials | Iron & steel | Adabia | 1997 | Steel | S | A |
TA Telecom | Telecommunications | Mobile telecommunications | Cairo | 2000 | Mobile network, advertising | P | A |
Talaat Moustafa Group | Conglomerates | - | Cairo | 1975 | Agriculture, construction, manufacturing, real estate | P | A |
Telecom Egypt | Telecommunications | Fixed line telecommunications | Cairo | 1854 | Fixed line, ISP | S | A |
The Egyptian Gazette | Consumer services | Publishing | Cairo | 1880 | Newspaper | P | A |
Travco Group | Consumer services | Travel & tourism | Cairo | 1979 | Tourism | P | A |
Tristar Air | Industrials | Delivery services | Cairo | 1998 | Cargo airline, defunct 2015 | P | D |
Vodafone Egypt | Telecommunications | Mobile telecommunications | Cairo | 1998 | Part of Vodafone (UK) | P | A |
The geography of Egypt relates to two regions: North Africa and West Asia.
The economy of Egypt is a highly centralized economy, focused on import substitution under president Gamal Abdel Nasser (1954–1970). During the rule of president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (2014–present), the economy follows Egypt's 2030 Vision. The policy is aimed at diversifying Egypt's economy. The country's economy is the second largest in Africa by nominal GDP, and 39th in worldwide ranking as of 2024.
Lake Nasser is a vast reservoir in southern Egypt and northern Sudan. It was created by the construction of the Aswan High Dam and is one of the largest man-made lakes in the world. Before its creation, the project faced opposition from Sudan as it would encroach on land in the northern part of the country, where many Nubian people lived who would have to be resettled. In the end Sudan's land near the area of Lake Nasser was mostly flooded by the lake. The lake has become an important economic resource in Egypt, improving agriculture and touting robust fishing and tourism industries.
Winemaking has a long tradition in Egypt dating back to the 3rd millennium BC. The modern wine industry is relatively small scale but there have been significant strides towards reviving the industry. In the late nineties the industry invited international expertise in a bid to improve the quality of Egyptian wine, which used to be known for its poor quality. In recent years Egyptian wines have received some recognition, having won several international awards. In 2013 Egypt produced 4,500 tonnes of wine, ranking 54th globally, ahead of Belgium and the United Kingdom.