Egypt’s foreign debt reaches 35%

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has revealed that the country’s external debt reached 35.1 per cent of GDP at the end of December 2018.

The government accounts for 49.8 per cent of the total foreign debt, as its debts rose by about $400 million last year to reach $48.1 billion. While the CBE’s debt rose to $28.2 billion, accounting for 29.2 per cent of the total external debt.

According to the CBE, the banking sector’s debt amounted to about $7.7 billion, making up 7.9 per cent of the total external debt.

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The CBE said that the external debt payments include $1.48 billion for the Paris Club, $1.69 billion for international institutions, and $387.36 million of interest on the Europe-denominated bonds put forward by the Ministry of Finance in international markets during the last period.

The debt also includes $2.07 billion in deposits payable to Kuwait, $5.25 billion in deposit instalments to Saudi Arabia, $78.2 million in interest on UAE deposits, and $28.1 million in interest on government bonds issued in 2010.