CBE keeps Egypt’s rates unchanged

Contrary to most expectations, Egypt’s central bank kept interest rates unchanged for the first time since September, stating that it was monitoring the effects of last year’s cycle of monetary tightening on inflation which is at its highest level since 2018.

The Monetary Policy Committee maintained the deposit rate at 16.25% and the lending rate at 17.25%, according to CBE’s statement on Thursday.

Only three of 10 economists surveyed by Bloomberg predicted the decision, while the rest expected Egypt’s third straight hike.

The government’s endeavour to restore attracting foreign investments in debt instruments steadily, as well as increasing the flow of foreign currency into the arteries of the official economy, acted as a foundation for the missed expectations that the Monetary Policy Committee to raise interest rates to pave the way for raising the rates of yields so that It could make yields more attractive to foreign investors.