The Egyptian Central Bank: $ 8.6 billion, the balance of payments deficit for the last fiscal year

The balance of payments of the Arab Republic of Egypt for the last fiscal year (2019/2020) recorded a deficit of 8.6 billion dollars, as the deficit came completely in the second half of the fiscal year.

The Central Bank of Egypt said that the balance of payments deficit in the second half of the fiscal year amounted to $ 9 billion as a result of the impact of the Corona pandemic on the economy.

The current account recorded a deficit of $ 11.2 billion, compared to a deficit of $ 10.9 billion in the fiscal year (2018/2019), as a result of the decline in the service balance surplus and the high balance of the deficit Investment.

The figures published by the Central Bank revealed a decline in tourism revenues of $ 2.7 billion during the last fiscal year as a result of the closure that prevailed in the world’s economies and the movement of aircraft stopped in the last quarter of the year. Those revenues are $ 9.9 billion, compared to $ 12.6 billion in the fiscal year before last.

On the other hand, the revenues of the Suez Canal rose by about $ 75 million, to reach $ 5.8 billion. The impact of the decline in tourism revenues on the surplus balance of services, which decreased by 31.2%.

On the level of the trade balance, the chronic trade deficit witnessed a decline of 1.5 billion dollars. The trade balance recorded a net deficit of 36.5 billion dollars. A deficit of $ 421 million, compared to a surplus of $ 8 million, the previous fiscal year.

The central bank said that the deficit in the balance of investment income increased by 344 million dollars, to reach 11.4 billion dollars, as a result of the increase in profits paid from the investments of the stock portfolio of 547.4 million Dollars, and an increase in the foreign debt interest of $ 373.6 billion, to record $ 2.9 billion.

During the last fiscal year, remittances from Egyptians abroad witnessed a surge of 2.6 billion dollars to reach 27.7 billion dollars, making it the largest source of foreign currency, surpassing exports that recorded 26.3 Billion dollar.

and foreign investment in Egypt recorded 7 billion and 453 million dollars, down from 8.2 billion dollars the fiscal year before last.

and the outflows of Egyptian securities recorded about $ 7.3 billion, including $ 4.6 billion in bonds.

and the balance of payments revealed that net external borrowing fell to 4.1 billion dollars compared to 6.3 billion dollars the previous year.