Cairo - Mubasher: The Egyptian minister of finance, Amr El Garhy has negated any intentions to move fuel prices during fiscal year 2017/2018.
It is worth noting that the cost of fuel subsidies in Egypt rose by 90.2% year-on-year during the nine-month period that ended on 31 March 2017, after the Central Bank of Egypt’s (CBE) decision to free the exchange rate of the local currency.
Egypt reached an agreement with International Monetary Fund (IMF) in August 2016 for $12 billion loan over three years, to support an economic reform plan that includes reducing electricity and fuel subsidies, floating the Egyptian pound (EGP), and introducing the value-added tax (VAT).
In June, The Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum decided to increase fuel prices for the second time after the EGP flotation, as part of the plan to cut state subsidies to ease the budget deficit.
The price of 92-octane gasoline increased to EGP 5 Egyptian per litre from EGP 3.5 per litre, while diesel and 80-octane increased to EGP 3.65 per litre from EGP 2.35 per litre.
Subsidies for petroleum products in 2017-2018 will fall to EGP 110 billion from EGP 145 billion, the petroleum minister then added.
