Egypt reopens slowly to revive coronavirus pandemic-hit economy

Egypt reopens slowly to revive coronavirus pandemic-hit economy

'The state must encourage the private sector on a macroeconomic scale so that it can overcome the crisis'. CAIRO: Egypt's economy had just started to recover after years of political turmoil and militant attacks when the coronavirus crisis hit, impacting especially its vital tourism sector.. Having shuttered shops and cafes in late March and forced millions of civil servants to stay home, it is slowly reversing some of these measures, bringing back many state workers and extending the trading hours of shops and malls.. From the start of June, this will rise to 50 percent, reflecting the authorities' confidence they can keep infections under control while jump-starting the tourism sector.. Egypt hopes to get back to the relatively better times of recent years, which saw annual economic growth rates above five percent.. The government has been implementing financial reforms since 2016 when it secured a $12 billion IMF loan, and investors have flocked back in recent years, driving a booming construction sector.. LIVE: Latin America reels from coronavirus pandemic, rest of the world eases lockdown measures /node/1670331/middle-east. 03:15 - The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 947 to 164,807, data from the Robert Koch