The International Monetary Fund announced on Wednesday that its Executive Board has completed the second review of Egypt’s economic reform program, allowing for the release of an additional $US2.03 billion batch of a three-year $US12 billion loan package. The review brings total disbursements to $US 6.08 billion, the IMF said in a statement. IMF’s First Deputy Managing Director and Acting Chair David Lipton stressed that the reform program embarked upon by the Egyptian government is showing good results and that the country’s struggling economy is recovering. “Egypt’s reform program is yielding encouraging results. The economy is showing welcome signs of stabilization, with GDP growth recovering, inflation moderating, fiscal consolidation remaining on track, and international reserves reaching their highest level since 2011,” he said. Lipton particularly lauded Egypt’s Central Bank for its role in the liberalization of the currency last year and keeping the banking system resilient to potential “moderate shocks.” “By tightening monetary policy early in the year, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has managed to reverse high inflation, which was the main risk to macroeconomic stability.” He added that the “continuation of this disinflationary trend could open the…
IMF Unlocks New $2bn Loan Tranche to Support Egypt’s Reforms
December 21, 2017
