Egypt: COVID-19 Heightens Economic Vulnerability

Egypt: COVID-19 Heightens Economic Vulnerability

The slowdown of international trade will have negative effects on traffic in the Suez Canal, which provided $5.2 billion in revenues in 2019.. The COVID-19 pandemic will be devastating to the Egyptian economy in the short term but the overall effect of the disease-induced emergency will depend on how long before it subsides, economists said.. Measures include the suspension of flights to and from Egypt, which froze the tourism and travel sector.. The tourism and travel sector contributes 12% of Egypt's GDP and employs 10% of the country's workforce.. It will likely have serious effects on the industrial sector, which is heavily reliant on raw materials from China.. Negative effects from the emergency are inescapable, especially with no end in sight, economists said..