19.2% Fall in Oil Trade Surplus to $3.97 Billion Contributed to a Sharp Deterioration in the Balance of Payments in 2008-09

摘要

According to preliminary balance of payments statistics released by the Central Bank of Egypt, the country's oil trade surplus narrowed by 19.2% to $3.97 billion in the year ended 30 June 2009 from $4.91 billion in 2007-08. As a result of the drop in world oil prices, the value of Egyptian oil exports fell to $11.4 billion in 2008-09 from $14.47 billion the year before, while the cost of oil imports declined from $9.56 billion to $7.03 billion from one year to the next. The overall balance of trade deficit widened as a result, from $23.42 billion in 2007-08 to $25.17 billion last year.