The Egyptian economy faces persistent economic challenges that have only worsened with the unrest that has followed the Arab Spring. The fledgling Muslim Brotherhood government in Cairo must balance the needs of a powerful military establishment with the needs of a fractious populace. Strikes, protests and sporadic violence have become a daily occurrence in the Middle Eastern country of more than 80 million people, and various government announcements have been quickly reversed. In this unstable environment, investor confidence has plummeted, damaging the country's financial position and bringing Egypt to the edge of complete instability. Egypt's negative financial account has exacerbated the outflow of foreign exchange previously driven by the country's large trade deficit, and foreign reserves are dwindling. Without foreign reserves, Cairo would be unable to pay for foreign currency-denominated imports and would be unable to maintain the value of the Egyptian pound.