FX reserves reach new high: Net foreign reserves increased by USD 258 mn in June to just under USD 46.4 bn, surpassing the previous record high of USD 46.1 bn recorded in May, according to the Central Bank of Egypt.

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High after high: The new high recorded in June follows May’s figures that topped their pre-Covid peak of USD 45.5 bn after the final tranche of the Ras el Hekma funds landed in state coffers. The USD 20 bn tranche consisted of USD 14 bn in fresh inflows and USD 6 bn in the form of a previous UAE deposit at the central bank.

No signs of slowing down: Credit rating agency Fitch Ratings expects Egypt’s foreign currency reserves to reach USD 49.7 bn in the current fiscal year and USD 53.3 bn in the next, the agency said in May.

We have more incoming: The government has EUR 5 bn worth of concessional loans from the EU coming its way by 2027, with the first EUR 1 bn in macro-financial assistance set to land in state coffers during the second half of 2024. The World Bank has also earmarked USD 3 bn for the government over the next three years to support the government’s economic and structural reforms, social protection programs, and green transition, with the first USD 700 mn trance recently greenlit by the bank. In addition, the IMF is also yet to channel much of its recently expanded USD 8 bn loan program, with the lender’s Executive Board expected to soon approve the disbursal of a fresh USD 1.2 bn trance after Egypt and the IMF reached a staff-level agreement on the third review of the program early last month.

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