Remittances register $26.4B since Egyptian pound flotation

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Sat, 13 Jan 2018 - 02:51 GMT

BY

Sat, 13 Jan 2018 - 02:51 GMT

People walk in front of the Central Bank of Egypt's headquarters at downtown Cairo, Egypt, November 3, 2016 - REUTERS-Mohamed Abd El Ghany

People walk in front of the Central Bank of Egypt's headquarters at downtown Cairo, Egypt, November 3, 2016 - REUTERS-Mohamed Abd El Ghany

CAIRO – 13 January 2017: Remittances from expatriate Egyptians increased to $26.4 billion since floating the Egyptian pound in November 2016 and until November 2017, compared to $22.3 billion in the same period a year earlier, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) said.

Remittances increased by $2.4 billion in the period between July and November 2017 to stand at $10.4 billion, compared to $8.1 billion in the same period of 2016.

In the month of July 2017 alone, remittances increased by 5.8 percent year-on-year to register $2.2 billion, the CBE said, adding that the increase came as a proof of Egyptians’ trust in the country’s banking sector.

According to previous data by the CBE, remittances rose by 38.9 percent year-on-year in October 2017 to around $2.2 billion.

Remittances are one of Egypt’s main foreign currency sources, which have been on the rise since Egypt floated its local currency in November 2016.

Egypt's international reserves hit an unprecedented level in December 2017, recording $37.019 billion. They have been increasing since the country clinched a $12 billion three-year loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in November 2016, restoring confidence in the Egyptian market.

Reserves were only $19.041 billion at the end of October 2016, just before Egypt floated its local currency in November, which was a milestone in the IMF-backed economic reform program that also included loosening capital controls, hiking taxes and slashing subsidies.

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