According to a Finance Ministry report issued Monday covering the first half of the 2009/2010 fiscal year, total government expenditure decreased by 6.8 percent to settle at LE152.4 billion for the period, compared to LE163.5 billion for the same period the previous year. The report attributed the decrease to a 45.8 percent reduction in funds allocated to subsidizing certain commodities and social grants, which amounted to LE39.4 billion for the period in question vs. LE72.7 billion for the same period the year before. Meanwhile, revenues rose by 14.1 percent for the period to LE38 billion; public debt interest by 40 percent to LE32.2 billion; expenditure on commodities and services by 23.4 percent to LE9.7 billion; and investment by 26.8 percent to LE18.3 billion. Nevertheless, the report went on to state that the budget deficit rose by 1.4 percent to LE57.5 billion for the period, despite decreased government expenditures, meaning that the deficit currently constitutes 4.9 percent of Egypt's gross domestic product. The report went on to attribute the deficit growth to a deceleration in overall economic activity as a result of the global financial crisis. According to the report, total revenue also fell by 25.8 percent to LE94.7 billion for the period, compared to LE127.7 billion for the same period the previous year. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
