Egypt Targets 7-8% Sustainable Annual Growth

The Mosque of Muhammad Ali is seen shrouded in fog at the Saladin Citadel fortification in Cairo, Egypt, 12 September 2023. (EPA)
The Mosque of Muhammad Ali is seen shrouded in fog at the Saladin Citadel fortification in Cairo, Egypt, 12 September 2023. (EPA)
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Egypt Targets 7-8% Sustainable Annual Growth

The Mosque of Muhammad Ali is seen shrouded in fog at the Saladin Citadel fortification in Cairo, Egypt, 12 September 2023. (EPA)
The Mosque of Muhammad Ali is seen shrouded in fog at the Saladin Citadel fortification in Cairo, Egypt, 12 September 2023. (EPA)

Egypt’s Planning Minister Dr. Hala El-Saied said Egypt is targeting sustainable annual growth ranging between 7 to 8 percent.

Speaking at the "Story of a Homeland” conference that was inaugurated by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Saturday, she added that despite diverse sources the growth remains unsustainable.

The minister remarked that Egypt aims to boost private sector investments from 36 percent to 65 percent of the overall investments by 2030.

The government is seeking to increase exports to $100 billion during the next five years to attract private investments worth $40 billion by 2060, and to proceed with its plans to boost the private sector's role in the economy.

Speaking at the same event, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli said Egypt would manage to produce all its petroleum products next year.

He added that crude oil will continue to be imported but will be refined in the country.

The PM said that the project to double the Suez Canal has replaced the idea of alternative routes.

Egypt plans to expand the length of the canal from 72 kilometers to 82 kilometers.

The canal is a prime source of foreign currency to Egypt.

Sisi had previously stated that the revenue generated from the Suez Canal is anticipated to reach $10.5 billion by the end of the year.

The annual revenues of the canal reached $9.4 billion during the 2022/2023 fiscal year, announced Suez Canal Authority (SCA) chief Osama Rabie in July.

During the G20 summit hosted by India last month, a memorandum of understanding was signed to set up the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor. The IMEC project envisages laying down, alongside the railway line, cables for electricity and digital connectivity, as well as pipelines for clean/green hydrogen export.

Madbouli added that Egypt aims to increase the number of tourists from 15 million annually to 30 million in the next five years.



Gold Firms; Focus on US Data for Cues on Fed's Policy Path

FILE PHOTO: A woman looks at a gold bangle inside a jewellery showroom at a market in Mumbai January 15, 2015. REUTERS/Shailesh Andrade//File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A woman looks at a gold bangle inside a jewellery showroom at a market in Mumbai January 15, 2015. REUTERS/Shailesh Andrade//File Photo
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Gold Firms; Focus on US Data for Cues on Fed's Policy Path

FILE PHOTO: A woman looks at a gold bangle inside a jewellery showroom at a market in Mumbai January 15, 2015. REUTERS/Shailesh Andrade//File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A woman looks at a gold bangle inside a jewellery showroom at a market in Mumbai January 15, 2015. REUTERS/Shailesh Andrade//File Photo

Gold prices hovered near a four-week peak on Thursday, while focus shifted to jobs report due on Friday for clarity on the Federal Reserve's 2025 interest rate path.
Spot gold edged 0.1% higher to $2,664.30 per ounce, as of 0732 GMT. US gold futures rose 0.4% to $2,681.80
"Prices are trading in a narrow range ... A new trigger is needed for gold to breach its resistance," said Ajay Kedia, director at Kedia Commodities in Mumbai.
The bullion hit a near four-week high in the previous session after a weaker-than-expected US private employment report hinted that the Fed may be less cautious about easing rates this year.
The market now awaits US jobs report on Friday for more cues on the Fed's policy path.
Investors are also awaiting Donald Trump to take office on Jan. 20 and his proposed tariffs and protectionist policies are expected to fuel inflation.
Policymakers at the Fed's last meeting also "noted that recent higher-than-expected readings on inflation, and the effects of potential changes in trade and immigration policy, suggested that the process could take longer than previously anticipated," the minutes showed on Wednesday.
Bullion is considered an inflationary hedge, but high rates reduce the non-yielding asset's allure.
"We believe the bulk of the rally has been put in and that while gold's upward momentum may carry it higher in the near term and in early 2025, a combination of physical and financial market factors may tame the rally and drive gold moderately lower by the end of next year," HSBC said in a note.
Elsewhere, physically-backed gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) registered their first inflow in four years, the World Gold Council said.
Spot silver added 0.2% to $30.17 per ounce, platinum dropped 0.3% to $952.54 and palladium shed 0.8% to $921.37.