Consumer spending program to end 26 October: The consumer spending initiative launched by the government in July will come to an end on 26 October, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said yesterday. The program aims to boost consumer spending by offering discounts on select goods such as electronics, furniture, appliances and clothes. Consumers are able to purchase products via a dedicated website, where merchants offer discounts of at least 15%. Some 7 mn people have visited the website since the initiative began, purchasing over 65k items from 1,631 outlets nationwide, Maait said at an event celebrating companies that achieved the highest sales under the initiative.

Some EGP 13 bn has been allocated from the public treasury to cover the discounts for ration card holders, he said. The government offered an additional 14% discount on goods for ration card holders, and allowed them to carry over unused sums from their monthly food subsidies to purchase products.

Background: The government launched the initiative to stimulate some EGP 125 bn-worth of consumer spending. Nearly 1.2k manufacturers and merchants signed up to offer discounts on some 4.2k products.