Egypt’s economy has taken off in the past two years faster than even those persuaded by the benefits of liberal market reforms had hoped. At 6.9 per cent, gross domestic product growth in the financial year to the end of June was at levels not seen since the late 1980s. At an annualised 7.1 per cent between July and September, it reached unprecedented territory.

Youssef Boutros Ghali, the finance minister, says that, at this pace, new jobs are making inroads into long-term unemployment – conservatively estimated this year at 9.6 per cent – as well as catering for 700,000 new entrants to the market.