IMF approves $820 million bailout for Egypt, needs more reforms By Reuters
Written by Kanishka Singh and Aidan Lewis
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The International Monetary Fund said on Monday it has completed a review allowing Egypt to withdraw $820 million, saying efforts to restore economic stability have begun to bear fruit but calling for progress in strengthening state-owned enterprises.
The review is the third under Egypt's latest 46-month IMF loan program, which was approved in 2022 and expanded to $8 billion this year following an economic crisis marked by high inflation and a severe foreign exchange deficit.
Egypt says it has moved to a more flexible trade regime, a policy the IMF said Monday remains “the cornerstone of the authorities' system.”
“Inflationary pressures are gradually easing, foreign exchange deficits have been eliminated, and fiscal targets (including spending on major infrastructure projects) have been met,” the IMF said in a statement.
“Although there has been progress on some important structural reforms, greater efforts are needed to implement the State Ownership Policy (SOP),” it added.
The Fund urged Egypt to speed up the process of dismantling state-owned enterprises and make reforms to prevent them from using unfair competition practices.
It also said that Egypt, where declining production has contributed to daily blackouts since last year, needs to contain financial risks from the energy sector.
“Returning electricity prices to their cost-recovery levels, including fuel prices by December 2025, is critical to supporting the supply of electricity to the population and reducing imbalances in the sector,” the IMF quoted Deputy Managing Director Antoinette M. Sayeh as saying.
Egypt raised fuel prices by up to 15% ahead of the IMF review, which was postponed from July 10.
