CBE: Kuwaiti Deposit Adds $2 bln to Egypt’s Foreign Reserves

Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) Hesham Ramez has confirmed on Tuesday that the bank has received the Kuwaiti US$ 2 billion deposit, which brought up the foreign monetary reserves to some US$ 19 billion.

The top official further disclosed that the Kuwaiti deposit’s conditions are the best for Egypt as the interest rate of the five-year deposit hits 0.25 percent, which is incomparable to the interest rate proposed by the Qatari government to its deposit in Egypt and which rated 4.25 percent for only one year maturity.

He added that US$7 billion worth of deposits have been received by Egypt since last July from three GCC countries; namely the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

The Governor also stressed that Egypt’s economic and financial positions are stable currently, thanks to GCC financial aid.

On July 9th, Saudi Arabia announced a US$ 5 billion aid package for Egypt that includes a US$ 1 billion cash grant, US$ 2 billion worth of petroleum products and natural gas, and US$ 2 billion as a deposit in the Central Bank of Egypt, free of normal financing expenses. The same day, the UAE offered a grant of US$ 1 billion and an interest-free loan of US$ 2 billion; the announcement came shortly after the governor of Egypt’s Central Bank visited the Emirates. And on July 10th, Kuwait pledged an aid package worth US$ 4 billion.