Planning and International Cooperation Minister Faiza Abul Naga said at a press conference on Sunday that the economic growth rate during the third quarter of the current fiscal year would drop to -4.2 percent, compared to 5.4 percent during the same period last year.
“This is the first time we have had a negative rate in ten years,” she said, attributing it to a drop in tourism by 33 percent, manufacturing by 12 percent, construction by 9 percent, transport and storage by 9.7 percent, and wholesale and retail trade by 7.9 percent.
“It is not yet catastrophic,” she said. “But we must quickly address the reasons for that drop.”
Translated from the Arabic Edition
