Egypt targets 7.2% drop in FY2019/20 budget deficit – minister

Egypt is targeting a budget deficit of 7.2 percent within the financial year 2019/2020, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said on Tuesday, down from a deficit of 8.2 percent during the financial year 2018/2019.

The government is targeting a deficit of 6.2 percent in the financial year 2020/2021, Maait said at a business conference in Cairo.

The country is targeting a primary surplus of 124 billion Egyptian pounds ($7.51 billion) within the financial year 2019/2020, he said. It had a primary surplus of 104 billion pounds last financial year, equivalent to 2 percent of GDP.

The budget deficit in the financial yer 2018/2019 was slightly below an official forecast of 8.4 percent.

More than $10 billion in hot money exited Egypt last fiscal year during the emerging markets crisis, Maait said.

Egypt is targeting economic growth of 6 percent within the financial year 2019/2020, which began in July, slightly more than the 5.6 percent targeted for the financial year 2018/2019.

Source: Reuters