Expenditures on the FY2017-18 budget may surpass EGP 1 tn for the first time, Al Ahram reports, citing unnamed Finance Ministry sources. According to Deputy Finance Minister Mohamed Maait, the increase in the budget is due in large part to fulfilling the constitutional requirement on health and education spending. The EGP float also drove up the cost of imports and subsidies, particularly as global oil prices have increased since last year. Expenditures on the FY 2016-17 budget had reached EGP 975 bn. The budget should be ready at the end of this week and the Ismail government is expected to review the draft in two weeks’ time before handing it over to the House of Representatives by the end of March. Next fiscal year’s budget anticipates GDP growth will reach around 5%, and a budget deficit of up to 9.5%.

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