Banking official: Int'l funds pumped $3B new investments in Egypt's market in a month

CAIRO - 13 July 2020: A reliable banking source said Monday that investment funds and international institutions pumped new investments worth $3 billion in the Egyptian market in one month, adding that around $1 billion funding of the sum was done over the past two days.

In statements to MENA, the source said the Egyptian market lured around $592 million in funds and international portfolios on Thursday only, which is the highest daily rate since the coronavirus outbreak.

On Sunday, the local market received $367 million, the source added.

He asserted that international portfolios have strongly returned to the Egyptian market on the background of a confidence in the strength and positive outlook of the Egyptian economy by the international rating institutions including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Over the past phase, Egypt received cash flows of approximately $10 billion, including $4.8 billion from IMF, in addition to $5 billion from the international bonds market.

Economists said that international investors have become more confident in the Egyptian economy especially in light of its strong standing in the face of repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic as a result of introducing a remarkable economic reform program that was put into effect since 2016. Influx of foreign funding would in return have a positive impact on the local currency and enhance the status of the Egyptian pound in the face of the dollar.

Over the past weeks, the dollar price witnessed a decrease of 31 piasters, recording LE 15.91 for purchase and LE 15.99 for selling for the first time in more than a month.