CAIRO, Oct 30 (Reuters) - Egypt’s external debt rose 17.3% to $108.70 billion in the year to end-June, central bank data showed on Wednesday.
The external debt was 36% of Egypt’s gross domestic product (GDP) in fiscal 2018/2019, marginally lower than the prior fiscal year’s 37%.
Egypt’s immediate budgetary pressure has become acute, with gross financing needs particularly high, the International Monetary Fund said in its Oct. 19 Regional Economic Outlook report.
The external debt was $92.64 billion at the end of fiscal 2017/2018. Egypt’s fiscal year begins on July 1.
Egypt paid $3.23 billion in interest and repaid $10.15 billion in principal in the year, the data showed. It paid $2.17 billion in interest and repaid $11.08 billion in principal the prior year.
Gross domestic debt rose to 4.20 trillion Egyptian pounds ($260 billion), or 79% of GDP, at end-March, the most recent figure available, from 3.70 trillion pounds at end-June 2018, or 83.3% of GDP. ($1 = 16.1350 Egyptian pounds) (Reporting by Patrick Werr; Writing by Yousef Saba; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
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