Cairo - Egypt on Thursday hiked fuel prices by up to 50 percent to help meet the terms of a $12 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan deal, a sharper rise than expected by many struggling with soaring living costs and a further test of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi's popularity. Fuel price increases had been widely anticipated as part of Egypt's loan accord with the International Monetary Fund and Thursday's measures were the second rise since the government floated the pound currency in November. Government officials say spending cuts will help revive an economy where subsidies have accounted for about a quarter of state expenditures. But austerity carries risks for Sisi as inflation and a contested deal to hand two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia have eroded his public standing. Prime Minister Sherif Ismail told reporters after the announcement that officials would monitor market prices, adding: "We will not allow any greed and exploitation of our citizens." Petroleum Minister Tarek El Molla told Reuters the price of 92-octane gasoline had been put up by more than 40 percent to 5 Egyptian pounds ($0.2767) from 3.5 pounds per litre. Diesel and 80-octane - the most commonly used fuel categories - rose more than 50 percent to 3.65 pounds per litre from 2.35 pounds. The government also increased the price of cooking gas cylinders - used mostly by poorer Egyptians - by 100 percent to 30 pounds ($1.66) from 15 pounds per cylinder. Molla said the total subsidies for petroleum products in 2017-2018 would fall to 110 billion Egyptian pounds ($6.09 billion) from 145 billion pounds ($8.02 billion). Fuel oil prices to cement factories will rise by 40 percent to 3,500 Egyptian pounds per tonne from 2,500 pounds a tonne, but gas prices to the industrial sector will remain stable, Molla said. Last year, the government embarked on an ambitious reform programme to revive the economy that includes lifting subsidies, raising taxes and loosening capital controls as part of a three-year IMF agreement.
