The deal aims to reduce government debt and strengthen the social protection network for citizens.
The International Monetary Fund has approved a deal that will provide a $3bn support package to cash-strapped Egypt over almost four years, with the agreement expected to draw in an additional $14bn in financing for the country.
The support package announced late on Friday – known as an Extended Fund Facility Arrangement – will not require the Egyptian government to cut spending on subsidies but will strengthen the social protection network for citizens, an Egyptian cabinet report released on Saturday said.
Egypt’s economy has been hit hard by higher oil and food prices following the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine, with the Egyptian pound losing 36 percent of its value against the dollar since March.
About a third of Egypt’s 104 million people live in poverty, according to government figures, and many Egyptians depend on the government to keep basic goods affordable through state subsidies and other similar schemes.
The package covers a period of 46 months and will give the Egyptian government immediate access to about $347m, which will help the debt-ridden nation bolster its balance of payments and budget, the IMF said in a statement.
It also aims “to catalyze additional financing of about $14 billion from Egypt’s international and regional partners” and introduce sweeping economic reforms, including a ‘’durable shift to a flexible exchange rate regime” and a ‘’monetary policy aimed at gradually reducing inflation”.
The announcement comes after a preliminary agreement was reached in October between Egypt and the fund, following reforms by Egypt’s central bank that included a hike in key interest rates by roughly 2 percentage points.
In a background document on Egypt, the IMF said the new programme would fund some of the country’s foreign currency financing gap, and that Cairo had secured $5bn in new financing for the fiscal year ending in June 2023.
Of that, $2bn would come from the sale of equity in private sector companies and $3bn from multilateral support, separate from the rollover of deposits by Gulf states in Egypt’s central bank.
The IMF said its programme aimed to support plans by authorities to reduce the state’s footprint in the economy, increase transparency around state-owned enterprises (SOEs), and create a level playing field for all economic actors.
Egypt has struggled to attract investment due to the prominent role of the state and the military in the economy and the advantages afforded to SOEs over private sector firms.
Egyptian authorities also committed to the publication of data including audit reports on fiscal accounts, procurement contracts of more than 20 million Egyptian pounds ($811,380), and an annual report on tax breaks, exemptions and incentives, the IMF added.
TORONTO – Strength in the base metal and technology sectors helped Canada’s main stock index gain almost 100 points on Friday, while U.S. stock markets also climbed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 93.51 points at 23,568.65.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 297.01 points at 41,393.78. The S&P 500 index was up 30.26 points at 5,626.02, while the Nasdaq composite was up 114.30 points at 17,683.98.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.61 cents US compared with 73.58 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down 32 cents at US$68.65 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was down five cents at US$2.31 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$30.10 at US$2,610.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents US$4.24 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says wholesale sales, excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain, rose 0.4 per cent to $82.7 billion in July.
The increase came as sales in the miscellaneous subsector gained three per cent to reach $10.5 billion in July, helped by strength in the agriculture supplies industry group, which rose 9.2 per cent.
The food, beverage and tobacco subsector added 1.7 per cent to total $15 billion in July.
The personal and household goods subsector fell 2.5 per cent to $12.1 billion.
In volume terms, overall wholesale sales rose 0.5 per cent in July.
Statistics Canada started including oilseed and grain as well as the petroleum and petroleum products subsector as part of wholesale trade last year, but is excluding the data from monthly analysis until there is enough historical data.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in the base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 172.18 points at 23,383.35.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 34.99 points at 40,826.72. The S&P 500 index was up 10.56 points at 5,564.69, while the Nasdaq composite was up 74.84 points at 17,470.37.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.55 cents US compared with 73.59 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up $2.00 at US$69.31 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up five cents at US$2.32 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$40.00 at US$2,582.40 an ounce and the December copper contract was up six cents at US$4.20 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
