The Egyptian pound loses about 17% against the dollar

The Egyptian pound was trading on Monday at 18.2 per dollar, or a loss of about 17% of its value in one day, when inflation in the country, an importer of Russian and Ukrainian wheat, is at the highest point in three years.

Between Sunday and Monday at the end of the day, the exchange rate of the pound against the greenback, almost unchanged for two years, rose from 15.6 to 18.2 pounds per dollar, according to the central bank.

Faced with inflation that reached 10% annually in February, the Egyptian Central Bank meeting on Sunday night of urgency raised interest rates by one point. The deposit rate thus increased to 9.25% and the loan rate to 10.25%.

Inflation increased due to food prices that rose by 20.1%, according to official figures.

The World Bank has already warned that a 30% increase in food prices could increase the poverty rate by 12%, which already affects one third of the 103 million Egyptians.

While the pound continued to collapse on Monday, the Ministry of Finance announced in the afternoon a fixed provisional customs exchange rate of 16 pounds to the dollar, as well as $7 billion of measures to support the poor.

Egypt imports 85% of the wheat and 73% of the sunflower oil it consumes from Ukraine and Russia.

sbh/awa/eg/mb