Saudi Arabia to support Egypt with $3B of loans

Saudi Arabia agreed to provide Egypt with more than $3 billion in loans and grants to help its dollar-starved economy.

The kingdom will loan $1.5 billion to develop the Sinai Peninsula and $1.2 billion to finance Egypt’s oil purchases, Egyptian Minister of International Cooperation Sahar Nasr said in Riyadh. Egypt will also receive a $500 million grant for buying Saudi exports and products, she said. The loans will be formally signed Tuesday.

The fresh aid suggests that Saudi Arabia is still committed to supporting Egypt even as the kingdom cuts subsidies, though it is much smaller than the tens of billions which Saudi Arabia along with Kuwait and the UAE poured into Egypt after the ouster of President Mohammad Morsi.