Egypt's trade deficit narrows by 17.4 pct: government source

Egypt's trade deficit narrowed by 17.4 percent in 2016, following a rise in exports and a decline in imports, a government official told Reuters on Wednesday. Import-dependent Egypt's economy is struggling to recover after a mass uprising in 2011 that drove away tourists and foreign investors and created a shortage of foreign currency that has sapped its ability to purchase from abroad and revive key industries. Egypt's exports rose to $20.285 billion in 2016 from $18.670 billion a year earlier,