Saudi Arabia May Buy Egyptian T-Bills

Saudi Arabia will provide Egypt with an aid package that may include a three-year deposit or the purchase of treasury bills and bonds, according to Egyptian Prime Minister Kamal el-Ganzouri.

Planning and International Cooperation Minister Fayza Aboulnaga said in an interview that the package will include a $1 billion deposit and $750 million to buy treasury bonds. A Saudi delegation will visit Egypt to discuss details, she said.

These announcements came after Aboulnaga met Saudi Finance Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf at a conference in Morocco. The kingdom has so far given Egypt $500 million out of almost $4 billion of aid pledged after last year’s popular revolt that ousted Hosni Mubarak.

Aboulnaga said she expects the country’s foreign currency reserves to start increasing in May.

Egypt’s net international reserves have been decreasing since last year’s uprising and are down more than 50 percent.
Egypt has requested a $3.2 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund, part of support sought to boost an economy that contracted last year, Bloomberg reported.