Egypt yesterday signed a contract worth some US$29 million with Kazakhstan to import 120,000 tons of wheat from the central Asian nation, the Egyptian Ministry said in a press release.

Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamed Rachid, who signed the deal with Kazakhstan, said the agreement was the first of its kind between the two countries.
Rachid said the agreement fell within the framework of fostering cooperation with Kazakhstan, especially in the trade domain, as agreed during a recent visit by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to the central Asian country.

He said that in return, Kazakhstan would import a number of products, such as medicine, textiles, carpets and furniture, from Egypt.

According to Rachid, Egypt and Kazakhstan have recently approved forming a joint trade committee under the two countries' trade ministers to boost trade exchange and remove obstacles hindering bilateral cooperation.

The minister predicted that trade volume between the two nations could reach US$170 million annually under the work of the committee.

Mubarak visited Kazakhstan on Nov. 7 as part of his three- nation tour which also included Russia and China.