Egypt’s FJP Says IMF Loan Is Needed to Cover Deficit, Mal Says

A $4.8 billion International Monetary Fund loan is the only way Egypt can bridge a budget deficit likely to reach $25 billion, Al Mal reported, citing a senior Freedom and Justice Party official.

The country doesn’t have other options to raise funds, such as issuing Islamic Sukuk, in the absence of a parliament that could approve them, the newspaper said, citing Abdallah Shehata, who heads the Islamist party’s economic committee.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ahmed A. Namatalla in Cairo at anamatalla@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Shaji Mathew at shajimathew@bloomberg.net