According to Egypt’s Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly, Russia’s war of aggression launched against Ukraine has sent prices for vital produce soaring, having posed enormous challenges to the Egyptian economy.
“In May 2021, the price of a barrel of oil was $67, now it has reached $112, while a ton of wheat cost $270 a year ago, now we pay for the same volumes based on a price of $435 per ton,” Madbouly explained.
Prime Minister said that the country’s economy has sustained losses of up to 130 billion Egyptian pounds ($7 billion) amid unprovoked Russian invasion of neighboring Ukraine, adding that the indirect consequences of the war in Ukraine are estimated at another over $18 billion.
Egypt had managed to restore tourism after the devastating global COVID-19 pandemic and achieve budget profitability of $5.8 billion ahead of Russia’s unprovoked attack on Ukraine, according to Moustafa Madbouly.
“Previously, we had imported 42% of grain, while 31% of tourists were from Russia and Ukraine, and now we have to look for alternative markets,” Prime Minister said.
On the bright side, the Prime Minister said that despite COVID-related crisis and turmoil in the movement of world trade, Egypt saw an unprecedented increase in income from the Suez Canal.
Egypt’s unemployment rate dropped to 7.2% in January-March, down from 7.4% in the previous quarter, the state statistics agency CAPMAS said announced today.
But the agency also reported that Egypt’s annual inflation rate surged to 14.9% in April, significantly higher than the previous month’s 12.1%.
In March, Egypt’s Central Bank raised its key interest rate for the first time since 2017, citing inflationary pressures triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine, which hiked oil prices to record highs.
