Minister of Finance, Ahmed Kouchouk, announced that the state budget achieved its highest primary surplus since 2005, reaching 3.1% during the period from July to May—despite declines in Suez Canal and energy sector revenues.

The Minister noted that Egypt’s economy is improving, highlighting that the private sector has demonstrated its capacity for growth, accounting for 60% of total investments over the past ten months.

He stressed the government’s commitment to meeting its fiscal targets, despite losing EGP 110 billion in Suez Canal revenues and allocating an additional EGP 150 billion in support of the energy sector.

“We recorded the highest tax revenue in years, up 38%, without imposing new burdens,” he said, adding that strong growth was achieved in the first half of the year across key sectors including tourism, non-oil manufacturing, and information and communications technology (ICT).

Kouchouk also pointed out that average spending on healthcare rose by 27%, and on education by 23% over the past ten months.

Subsidized commodity allocations reached EGP 95 billion, marking a 37% annual increase, while the social protection program Takaful and Karama saw EGP 30 billion in funding, up 24%.

Additionally, EGP 11 billion was spent on state-funded medical treatment, a 35% annual increase, while industrial production received EGP 8 billion in support, growing by 128%. Export support allocations reached approximately EGP 15 billion.

The Minister also revealed that external debt owed by budgetary entities declined by $2 billion over the past ten months, with the average debt maturity extended to 1.8 years as of December 2024.

He concluded by noting that remittances from Egyptians abroad rose to $26.4 billion during the July–March period, reflecting an 82.7% year-on-year increase.