The current account deficit rose by 66.9 percent to record $ 7.6 billion during the First Half of FY 2020/20212021 against $ 4.6 billion in the corresponding period, according to data released by central bank figures (pdf) released last night.
The rise of the current account deficit came on the back of travel restrictions brought about by the pandemic.
The travel restrictions has caused the tourism sector to register only one quarter of the revenues realized in the corresponding period that witnessed the highest tourism revenues before the Corona pandemic( $ 1.8 billion compared to US$ 7.2 billion).
Egypt’s current account deficit widened to $4.8 bn in 2Q2020-2021, from $ 3.2 bn in the same period last year. The deficit grew 74 percent on a quarterly basis from $ 2.8 bn in 1Q.
