CAIRO: The economy in Egypt is recovering from the effects of the financial crisis, showing signs of improvement during the month of May, a report issued by the Ministry of Economic Development said. The report was prepared in collaboration with the Information and Decision Support Center (IDSC), the faculty of economics and political science and the Egyptian Center for Economic Studies. Most indicators are moving in the positive direction; the confidence in the economy performance index scored 110.4 points, the operating index scored 92.8 and the prices index scored 88.9. Othman Mohamed Othman, minister of economic development, said that the index of production activity fell in May from the previous month, staying below 100 points to reflect the relative decline after the crisis. The report added that export index rose by 2.1 since April 2009, which indicates that it is recovering from the financial crisis' negative impact. Concerning the employment index in the Egyptian labor market, the report indicated an improvement, reaching 97.2 points in May, up from 96 points in April. The report said that although the general price index has not been able to break the barrier percentage points during the month of May 2009, it has improved nonetheless, rising from 87.9 points in April to 88.9 points in May. This is also reflected in the consumer price index, which recorded approximately 145.5 points in May compared to about 129.3 points in May. However, the tourism sector did not show similar prospect. The report indicated a decline in the number of tourists visiting Egypt during the month of May. Although the number of building permits issued in May is less than the previous months, the report still indicated significant improvement of the numbers recorded before the crisis hit. Steel sales simultaneously decreased during the same month, selling only around 350,000 tons, compared to 558,000 tons in April. The report also indicated a slight decline in the index of the performance of the Suez Canal in May as a result of the decline in the growth rate of the canal's proceeds compared to April of the same year.
