Foreign direct investment in Egypt is expected to have risen to about $8.7 billion in the 2016-17 fiscal year that ended last June, compared to about $6.9 billion the previous year, an Investment Ministry statement said on Friday.

Egypt late last year signed a $12 billion three-year International Monetary Fund loan agreement and floated its currency in a bid to lure back investors that fled after its 2011 political uprising.

The ministry said that current indicators suggest FDI will exceed $10 billion in the current fiscal year.

Egypt's central bank said this week that foreign reserves jumped by $4.73 billion to $36.04 billion at the end of July, higher even than their level before the 2011 uprising drained the country of foreign currency.

The last quarter of the 2016-17 fiscal year saw a jump in the number of new companies established, hitting 3,566 compared to 3,033 the year before, the statement said.

Egypt is hoping a new investment law ratified in June that provides a raft of incentives like tax breaks and rebates can draw in fresh capital needed to boost economic growth.

The executive regulations of the law, which provide crucial details on what projects are eligible, are expected to be passed within the coming weeks.