Bleeding Reserves Will Continue By $ 10 billion, At Least In 2017

Bleeding of the country’s exchange reserves is usual given the sheer size of imports, which far exceeds the volume of exports, calling on the government to abandon the financing of luxury imports if it wants to maintain exchange reserves at high levels, Financial and economic expert, Kamal Rezzig, told Echorouk.

“Measures that are taken to curb the imports bill and the bleeding of exchange reserves are not applied, or the actions that were taken with limited effectiveness”.

“Government said previously that the imports will be in the range of $ 40 billion, but they reached $ 47 billion, therefore imports of luxury products are not funded at all by the state, and in light of these conditions, the state ensures only the funding of essential imports.”

“Another bleeding of exchange reserves will occur during 2017, at a rate of $ 10 billion, at least, and the authorities announced on imports in the range of $ 45 billion and exports of $ 35 billion, with a difference of $ 10 billion. Current year is unlikely to end in the range of $ 100 billion”.

“Government is required to make 2017, a year of exports by excellence, not with speaking or statements, but with field actions.Government expects the revenues will reach $ 35 billion, and imports will reach $ 45 billion, with the support of exports out of hydrocarbons actually, and not with talk only, as exports can reach $ 40 billion, and thus they will reduce the reserves’ bleeding by $ 5 billion only.