Egypt's FM Reassures US Ambassador

Egyptian Minister of Finance El-Morsi Hegazy met with US ambassador to Egypt Anne Patterson to discuss Egypt's economic woes, prospects of revamping its national economy and developments in the IMF loan discussions. This is Hegazy's first ever official meeting after he assumed the role of minister of finance last week. Hegazy stressed to the US ambassador that Egypt's economy is on the right track and that it has the ability to recover as it still has undiscovered potential, and that he has no doubt that the economy will soon reach unprecedented growth rates.

The finance minister announced in a press statement on Friday that a delegation of top-IMF officials will visit Cairo soon, to continue negotiations over a $4.8 billion loan, and that the Egyptian government is determined to generate a package of economic reforms that will boost the economy without burdening low-income tranches. The US ambassador to Egypt Anne Paterson affirmed that the relationship between Egypt and the US "remains strong," and that the US will continue with its' "unconditional" support to Egypt's economy until it overcomes the hardships of the current transitional period.

Patterson added that there are countless opportunities for both Egyptian and US investors to promote investments and "mutual economic cooperation." Last week, in his first statement to the Egyptian media upon assuming the new ministerial position, Hegazy proclaimed that he was ready to complete discussions with the IMF on the negotiated loan designed to boost Egypt's struggling economy. IMF officials, who visited Cairo recently to proceed with talks on the loan, had said that meetings with Egyptian officials were productive, and that the "loan would be directed to curb Egypt's public deficit."