Second round of Eurobonds in June THE GOVERNMENT is considering a new Eurobond issue at the end of May or beginning of June, Finance Minister Amr Al-Garhi said on Sunday. He said in April that the government was discussing a second Eurobond offering that would be in the range of $1.5 to $2 billion. In February, Egypt successfully issued $4 billion in Eurobonds on the global bond markets, the largest issuance in Egypt and Africa, as part of the government's efforts to diversify its funding sources to help it bridge its financing gap. Al-Garhi said there were several positive factors that could provide a better climate for the coming offering, including improvements in the economy and a strong investor appetite to invest in Egyptian treasury bills. In April, the government hiked the maximum amount of dollar bonds it could issue on international markets to $7 billion from $5 billion. Tax revenues increase TOTAL tax revenues amounted to LE291.13 billion in the first 10 months of the current 2016/2017 fiscal year, compared to LE225.69 billion in the same period last year, Minister of Finance Amr Al-Garhi has said. He added that the revenues exceeded the LE289.87 billion that had been projected and included taxes from the Petroleum Ministry, the Suez Canal Authority and the Central Bank of Egypt. Al-Garhi also said that tax returns presented by individuals and companies had increased during the current tax year that ended on 30 April to generate LE21.34 billion in revenues, increasing by 48 per cent compared to last year. Imminent credit upgrade? SIX months after securing a $12 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Egypt is doing better in the international bond markets, bringing its borrowing costs to their lowest level since 2015, Bloomberg reported on Monday. The improvement has lifted market perceptions of Egyptian risk above the country's ratings by the global rating agencies. Egypt's debt has had an implied rating of B2 or better for almost three months, according to Moody's Analytics, one level higher than its official grade, Bloomberg said. “Egypt has traded very well due to the positive reform momentum, IMF assistance, and the generally bullish view towards emerging markets,” Anthony Simond of Aberdeen Asset Management in London, told the news agency. “If the government can keep its focus and not water down its plans, then an upgrade should be possible within six to 12 months,” he added. Egypt's credit rating at Moody's Investors Service is B3, six levels below investment grade, which is similar to its B- score at S&P Global Ratings. The country is at one level higher at Fitch Ratings.
