Suez Canal Annual Revenues Rise 8.5% in November

Egypt’s revenues from the Suez Canal totaled $442.4 million in November an 8.5 percent increase from November 2012 of $407.7 million, according to the Suez Canal Authority.

The figure represents a 5 percent drop from the previous month’s revenues of $466 million.

According to State’s Information Portal, the revenues of the vital water way in the period between July and November reached roughly $2.2 billion compared to $2.1 billion in the same period in 2012.

The artificial waterway which connects the Mediterranean and Red Sea is one of the country’s main sources of foreign currency revenue, along with tourism, oil and gas exports, and remittances from Egyptian expatriates.

The number of vessels passing through the canal also dropped this month, from 1,503 in October to 1,428 in November.

Egypt’s forex reserves, which received a boost from Gulf aid packages to surpass $12 billion this summer, stood at $17.8 billion at the end of November.

Source: Ahram Online