Beblawi: Lagarde comments admit Egypt’s needs

Egypt’s premier said comments by International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde acknowledge that Egypt needs assistance. While domestic efforts to resolve the economic crisis are paramount, “that doesn’t mean the IMF should be excluded,” Hazem al-Beblawi told reporters in Cairo Saturday. “No wise country would want to cut its relations with international funding organizations.”

A $4.8 billion loan agreement with the IMF is an essential part of efforts to revive economic growth, Planning Minister Ashraf al-Arabi said Aug. 5. Last week, he said talks had been postponed as Egypt undergoes a bloody struggle between the generals in charge of the nation and their Islamist opponents.

“We are very keen to support the Egyptian people in this transition period, but clearly not all the ingredients are all on the table,” Lagarde said in an interview with Bloomberg Television in Jackson Hole, Wyoming Saturday. “There needs to be global political endorsement, there needs to be enough stability for the policy commitments to be delivered. That is not yet the case.”