CAIRO: Egypt has allowed hotels to run at full capacity while observing strict coronavirus precautionary measures, an official at the Ministry of Tourism said on Sunday.

Assistant Minister Abdel Fattah al-Asi told Reuters the decision had already come into effect.

Egyptian hotels had been running at 70% of capacity since July due to COVID-19 regulations. Tourism accounts for up to 15% of Egypt's national output, and is a key source of foreign currency.

(Reporting by Momen Saeed Atallah; Writing by Ahmad Elhamy; Editing by Alison Williams) ((ahmad.elhamy@thomsonreuters.com; +201023399104; Reuters Messaging: ahmad.elhamy.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))