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Egypt's net international reserves fell a monthly $87 million to reach $15.04 billion in September, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) announced. In August, reserves gained $727 million, mainly driven by the receipt of the first tranche – worth $500 million – of a promised $2 billion deposit from Qatar. Finance Minister Momtaz El-Said was quoted by state media earlier in October as saying that procedures for the second tranche of the deposit, also worth $500 million, have been finalised, indicating that the deposit is on its way.
Egypt's net foreign reserves nearly halved in the aftermath of January 2011's popular uprising which put the brakes on business and tourism activity. But the figure began to stabilise around April 2012, following a relative upturn in tourism receipts and the arrival of Qatari funds. Egypt's balance of payments deficit widened to $11.3 billion in the 2011/12 financial year which ended in June, up from $9.8 billion the year before.
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