IMF to unveil new loan package for Egypt

WASHINGTON — The IMF plans to unveil a new loan agreement with Egypt for approval by its board, the global lender's communications chief said Thursday, as the country looks to strengthen its economy.

"A policy package of reforms will be considered by the Fund's executive board, along with the fourth review of Egypt's program," International Monetary Fund communications director Julie Kozack told reporters in Washington.

Kozack said the new planned loan agreement would take the form of a Resilience and Sustainability Facility, or RSF, designed in part to help countries tackling climate change, adding that she could not yet confirm how large it will be.

Last year, the IMF expanded its existing loan package from $3 billion to $8 billion to help Egypt manage its economic challenges amid regional instability unleashed by the war in Gaza.

A draft agreement was reached on a review of Egypt's existing loan program back in December which should unlock an additional $1.2 billion to help the Egyptian economy as it battles a series of headwinds.

The executive board's approval is largely a rubber-stamping exercise, with disagreements between stakeholders usually ironed out before the vote. 

Repeated attacks on Red Sea shipping by Yemen's Huthi rebels in support of Palestinians in Gaza caused Egypt's revenues from the Suez Canal - a key foreign currency earner — to plummet.