Egypt takes aim at subsidies in latest budget

摘要

Egypt will cut energy subsidies by nearly 43pc in the country’s 2016-17 fiscal budget “due to lower global oil prices,” minister of finance Amr al-Gahry said. Fuel subsidies will be reduced to E￡35bn ($3.94bn) from E￡61bn, while Egypt targets a lower budget deficit of 9.8pc of GDP, down from 11.5pc last year. Egypt’s subsidy regime has put a tremendous strain on government resources, particularly as the country has moved from being a net exporter to net importer over the last few years.