CAIRO, April 7, 2022 (Xinhua) The Central Bank of Egypt announced today (Thursday) a decrease in the foreign exchange reserve balance by more than three billion dollars, to record regarding 37.082 billion dollars at the end of last March.
The bank said in a statement that the balance of foreign exchange reserves at the end of last March amounted to regarding 37.082 billion dollars, compared to 40.99 billion dollars at the end of the previous February.
The statement added that the Central Bank of Egypt, during the month of March, “used part of the foreign exchange reserves to cover the needs of the Egyptian market and to cover the exit of foreign investments and international portfolios, as well as to ensure the import of strategic goods and the payment of international obligations related to the state’s external debt.”
The statement explained that this comes as a commitment to the bank’s role “in maintaining the stability of the Egyptian markets and in light of the turbulent global economic conditions and the Russian-Ukrainian crisis.”
The bank stressed that “despite the change in the reserve that occurred during the month of March, it is still able to cover more than 5 months of commodity imports, exceeding the international indicators of the adequacy of reserves.”
The bank also stressed that “in light of the current developments, it will continue to closely monitor and assess the global situation to take all necessary measures to face any repercussions that may occur in the future.”
And the economic expert, Dr. Karim Al-Omda, said that the decline in foreign exchange reserves at the Central Bank of Egypt last March is very similar to the decline that cash reserves had previously suffered during the height of the Corona pandemic.
In a statement to Xinhua, the mayor attributed this decline to the crisis facing the international economy as a result of the Ukrainian crisis, an increase in public spending, and a decline in foreign exchange transfers from abroad, whether Egyptians’ transfers or the drop in tourism.
He considered that this decline in foreign exchange reserves is “temporary” as a result of the crisis, expecting it to return to its normal level as soon as the effects of the crisis fade and the international economy recovers.
The mayor said that the rise in oil prices and the increase in the income of Arab countries as a result would lead to an increase in Arab investments and tourism in Egypt, which would result in a rise in Egypt’s income from foreign currencies and an increase in foreign exchange reserves at the Central Bank.