Persistent and successive external shocks have complicated policy execution.
The ongoing war in Sudan, which erupted in April 2023, precipitated a significant
refugee inflow into Egypt, with some 603,000 Sudanese refugees registered with
UNHCR as of December 31, 2024. Trade disruptions in the Red Sea since December
2023 have reduced foreign exchange inflows from the Suez Canal by US$6 billion in
2024, while transit trade volumes remain at about a third of pre-conflict levels, with
further negative spillovers to growth and fiscal revenues.