BOP SWUNG TO DEFICIT: Egypt’s balance of payments (BoP) recorded a deficit of USD 2.8 bn in FY2015-16 from a surplus of USD 3.7 bn in FY2014-15. The drop came on the back of a fall in the current account deficit to USD 18.7 bn from USD 12.1 bn a year earlier. The fall was the result of drops in tourism income to USD 3.8 bn in FY2015-16 to USD 7.4 bn in FY2014-15, in remittances to USD 16.8 bn from USD 19.2 bn, and foreign assistance to the government to USD 101.5 mn from USD 2.7 bn.

To put the extent of the drop in tourism revenue into perspective; for the first time since data was recorded, Egyptians spent more money travelling abroad than tourists spent in Egypt. The trade deficit did better in comparison, as it improved slightly with the decline in global oil prices and as imports dropped by a larger proportion than exports. A silver lining from the BoP report is that net FDI increased to USD 6.8 bn from USD 6.4 bn a year earlier and the net inflow of USD 14.4 bn in other investments compared to USD 12.5 bn last fiscal year. The CBE’s report can be downloaded in full here.