Egypt's real gross domestic product grew by 4.5 per cent in the 2024-25 financial year, up from 2.4pc the previous year, Finance Minister Ahmed Kouchouk said yesterday, boosted by reforms tied to International Monetary Fund (IMF) financing and increased manufacturing activity.
The Arab world’s most populous country has come under economic pressure from a currency devaluation in March 2024, high inflation, and the impact of the war in Gaza.
Inflation, which peaked at a record 38pc in September 2023, has begun to ease but remains high. Urban consumer price inflation fell to 13.9pc in July from 14.9pc in June.
Egypt’s fiscal year runs from July to the end of June.
In the budget it had predicted GDP growth of 4.2pc.
Over the last year, the government accelerated economic reforms under an $8 billion programme with the IMF and secured $24bn in investment from the UAE’s sovereign wealth fund, including a major land deal on the Mediterranean coast.
In a news conference reviewing Egypt’s financial results, Kouchouk said the country lost 145bn Egyptian pounds ($2.99bn) in Suez Canal revenues in 2024-25 as a result of disruptions in the Red Sea from attacks by Yemen’s Houthis on shipping. In the previous year, revenues had reached $7.2bn.
The minister also said Egypt imported 4.5 million metric tonnes of wheat, costing $1.2bn, down more than 21pc from the previous year.
Egypt, often the world’s largest wheat importer, requires more than 8m tonnes annually to produce subsidised bread for over 70m citizens.
The government bought just over 3.9m tonnes locally this year, falling short of its 4–5m tonne target.
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