Trade between Egypt and Sudan suffers following media spat

Business is suffering amid spat between Egypt and Sudan: Tension between Egypt and Sudan, deepened by a recent media spat, has led to mounting trade restrictions that are now throwing businesses into disarray, commodity traders told Reuters. Hany Hussein, executive director of Egypt's Agricultural Export Council, says Sudan’s blanket ban on all agricultural goods last month has still not yet been accompanied by “any explanation as to what is actually wrong with the Egyptian goods.” Reuters adds that traders are saying “the media war of words has suddenly made the situation worse, with guidelines on what products can be sold over the border increasingly unclear and no resolution in sight… Even larger companies have been caught in the crossfire, like the Saudi Arabian Savola Group, which will have to re-route much of its Egypt-based sugar production that is normally sold to Sudan, according to a company source.”