CAIRO: The Egyptian Central Bank reported over the weekend that Egyptians working abroad are not sending the same amount of money back home, in a sign that the global financial crisis may be arriving to the North African nation. Although reports have stated that Egypt has largely avoided the global economic meltdown for the past year, the bank reported that remittances from those working outside the country dropped to $1.74 billion in the third quarter of this fiscal year compared to $2.29 billion during the previous quarter. In the monthly report issued by the Central Bank, Egyptians working in Kuwait were at the forefront of the drop in remittances, highlighting the struggles continuing in the gulf. According to the report, $337 million arrived in Egypt, $298 million from the United Arab Emirates and $196 million from Saudi Arabia. All these numbers were significantly lower than previous quarters. Many Egyptians survive on the money that comes in from family members abroad and the lack of money coming in has worried the government, especially with the cost of food prices expected to continue to rise ahead of the Ramadan month of fasting. “It could show that times are getting tough and we are beginning to see the effects on us back home,” one finance ministry official, who was not authorized to speak to the media, told Bikya Masr. “It is still too early to panic.” Workers living in the United States sent an estimated $544 million to lead Egyptians abroads, while the United Kingdom sent around $100 million, the bank said. The bank also pointed to the decline of Egyptian trade abroad during the period of July to March of the fiscal year that ended in June, reporting a $57.9 billion falling, down 0.8 from the previous year. **reporting by Mohamed Abdel Salam BM
