CAIRO, Jan 16 (Aswat Masriya) - Moody's Investor Service expects that Egypt's economy will grow by 4% in 2017, and the growth rate will increase 4.5% in the following year. 

Moody's attributes this potential increase to private consumption and foreign investments which will push forward economic development in Egypt, in a report published on Sunday. 

The report, which forecasts the economic progress for the Levant and North African countries, also said that the weak government performance, internal challenges, and geopolitics remain a threat to its dominant debts.

The report expects that  the report expects that trade deficits will reach 7.5%, but will improve in the following year by going down to 6%.

"Meanwhile, Egypt maintains its position as the strongest economic assessment in the region; which not only reflects its significance but also its growth prospects compared to other countries," the report read.

Deputy director Elisa Parisi-Capone said the abundance of foreign funding through IMF loan programmes which are followed by 4 out of 5 countries in the Levant and North Africa bolsters Moody's credit expectations for the region, in an official statement.