Weathering the storm
Economic indicators suggest Egypt is beginning to feel the pinch of the international credit crisis. But not everything is bad news, writes Sherine Nasr.
Figures released this week show that Egypt's foreign exchange reserves fell by $600 million in November to $34.4 billion, the first decline in four years. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) almost halved in the first quarter of the current fiscal year, falling to $1.6 billion compared to $3 billion a year earlier. The government lost $3.5 billion on its investment portfolio, mostly treasury bills. The economy still grew at a rate of 5.8 per cent during the first quarter of 2008/ 09, though this is down from 6.5 per cent for the first quarter of the previous year.
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