FEDERATION OF EURO-ASIAN STOCK EXCHANGES
ANNUAL REPORT APRIL 2009
EGYPTIAN EXCHANGE
ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS
Besides the political tension that has been
going on in the region, Egypt has maintained a
stable political environment during 2008 that is
considered investor friendly.
On the economic front, the Egyptian economy
has faced the global financial crisis after four
years of excessive and successful economic
reform programs that reflected positively on all
its economic indicators, which in turn has
supported the economy against the severe
consequences of the economic crisis. A
growth rate of 7.2% over the FY2007/2008 was
recorded and a strong performance for the
balance of payments was maintained on the
back of exports growth as well as tourism
revenues. Moreover, there was a surge in FDI
flows which reached US$ 34.11 billion by the
end of December 2008, recording the highest
foreign investment flows in North Africa.
However, like the rest of the world, it is
expected that the decrease in global trade
transactions and demand trends will affect the
Egyptian economy. Therefore, the Egyptian
government has prepared some initiatives
towards encouraging more investments and
depending on its population to generate high
domestic demand levels, aiming to maintain a
growth rate of 5% throughout the coming
period.
On the other hand, the Egyptian banking
sector was one of the least affected worldwide
by the financial crisis, mainly due to the
structural reform program undergone by the
government since 2004 in the banking sector
that has strengthened and developed the
sector’s structure and increased its
competitiveness. In addition to the fact that the
application of mortgage finance in Egypt has
been cautiously dealt with.
From another perspective, the global crisis
had contributed to decrease global price
levels leading to more contained inflation
rates, which had its positive effect on the
Egyptian economy by decreasing the
inflationary pressures that have been facing
the market during the summer of 2008. In
December 2008, Egypt’s urban inflation
dropped to 18.3% YoY, down from 23.6% YoY
in August 2008, while the countrywide inflation
dropped from 25.6% to 20.2% during the
same comparable months.*
* Info provided by the EGX
Key Information Contacts
Ministry of Finance www.mof.gov.eg
Ministry of Investment www.investment.gov.eg
Central Bank of Egypt www.cbe.org.eg
Capital Market Authority www.cma.gov.eg
Misr for Clearing, Depository and Central Registry www.mcsd.com.eg
SMEs Market (NILEX) http://nilex.egyptse.com/ar
2007/08-ORIGINS OF GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT (%)
2007/08-COMPONENTS OF GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT (%)
Manufacturing
Mining (incl. oil & gas)
Agriculture
Other
Wholesale & Retail Trade
General government
Transportation
16.42
Private consumption
Government consumption
Gross fixed investment
Exports of goods & services
Imports of goods & services
Changes in stocks
80
13.21
72.8
70
11.20
16.31
60
50
8.36
38.8
40
32.7
30
11.20
4.06
30.44
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20
10
0
22.2
10.9