Egypt bids for rescue package

Egypt formally asked the International Monetary Fund for a $4.8 billion loan today, seeking a desperately needed rescue package for its faltering economy but raising the possibility of painful restructuring in a country still reeling since its revolution more than 18 months ago.

The loan deal, which Egypt says it will reach by the end of the year, presents a major test to the Muslim Brotherhood-rooted president, Mohammed Morsi, the country’s first freely elected leader, brought to power after the fall of Hosni Mubarak.