Egypt’s banks secured $56B for imports since flotation

CAIRO – 2 October 2017: Banks operating in Egypt have provided a total value of $56 billion for importers since the flotation of the Egyptian pound in November, governor of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) Tarek Amer said Monday.

Speaking to Egypt Today, Amer said that banks have offered $110 billion to import needs since November 2015.

Egypt’s foreign reserves hiked $400 million by the end of September to reach $36.535 billion, up from $36.1 billion in August, the CBE announced Monday.

Foreign reserves in the CBE have been rising since the Egyptian government clinched a $12 billion three-year loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in November, restoring confidence in the Egyptian market.

Deposits in Egypt’s banks have increased by LE 920 billion ($52 billion) during fiscal year 2016/2017, to stand at around LE 3.04 trillion by the end of June 2017, compared to LE 2.12 trillion in the same month last year.

With regard to foreign investments in government debt tools, it recorded $15 billion since the flotation.