Ms. Caroline Atkinson, Director of the External Relations Department at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), made the following comments in response to questions on Egypt during the IMF’s regular press briefing today:

“The Egyptian authorities had indicated that they had expected to have a financing need of some $10-12 billion from now through June 2012 from the international community. They’ve approached bilateral and multilateral partners, including the IMF, to provide the financial support for what is their home-grown program. We expect that an IMF team will visit Cairo shortly to begin discussions with the Egyptian authorities on an arrangement. The size and scope of Fund support will be defined as discussions progress.”