Egypt's BOP records $1.5 bn surplus in FY 2013/14

Egypt's balance of payments registered a surplus worth some $1.5 billion in the 2013/14 fiscal year, compared to a mere $237 million the prior year, according to a statement released by the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) on Thursday.

Under the balance of payments, Egypt saw its current account deficit dip to $2.4 billion, down from a significant $6.4 billion during the aforementioned period.

The CBE attributed the improvement in the current account deficit to the 57.7 percent increase in net unrequited transfers (official transfers and expatriates' remittances), which reached $30.4 billion compared to $19.3 billion in the previous year.

Egypt received billions of dollars in aid from Gulf countries after a popular uprising ended Islamist president Mohamed Morsi's one year rule.