The oil shipments were part of a five-year deal that Saudi would provide Egypt with 700,000 tonnes of refined oil products per month, but these were stopped in early October amid a row over Egypt's position towards Syria. Relations between Saudi Arabia and Egypt have served as a bedrock of stability in the Middle East for much of the period since the second Gulf War (1990-91), but this subset of the regional order now appears in jeopardy.
If Riyadh withholds investments or future assistance, the Egyptian economy may deteriorate even further.
Should Egypt's economic crisis deepen, its political stability outlook would look uncertain at best and unsustainable at worst.
This crisis compounds the Kingdom's recent regional setbacks, as the Syrian and Yemeni wars slide towards unfavourable outcomes for Riyadh.
