IMF mission lauds stability of Egyptian credit market

Prime Minister Atef Ebeid said the government would take urgent measures to control recession and activate capital and stock exchange market. He added that all government outstanding debts will be repaid within nine months at LE 2.5 billion per month.

The Prime Minister said President Mubarak agreed last Monday on the appointment of a working group comprising representatives from the National Investment Bank, Audit Bureau, and the Ministry of Planning for reviewing all State outstanding debts.

He also said he would submit to the President a report to be referred to the People's Assembly on possible cut to the State budget in order to repay the government debts.

Emerging from his meeting with the IMF mission attended by members of the ministerial economic group, Ebeid said that measures for reviving the market include increasing resources through upgrading the taxation system without levying new taxes and increasing oil and economic bodies' resources as well as implementing the privatization program.

The Prime Minister said increase in oil revenues is expected to be achieved by oil revenues which are valued at LE 3 billion, adding that a stake of the shares of electricity and telecommunications companies would be offered for sale, an issue which would be raised before the President in the coming few days.

Ebeid expounded that the mission of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has expressed satisfaction with the stability of the credit market and asserted that Egypt has escaped the negative effects of the plunge of world stock market crisis and decline in oil prices.

He further said prices of shares will start to pick up with the resurgence of economic activity, adding that pumping funds into the market would help open new investment vistas and eliminate recession.