The US dollar broke through EGP 18 for buying at the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) on Monday, for the first time since the flotation of the Egyptian pound on 3 November.
The official price of the dollar against the pound at the CBE on Monday registered EGP 18.0323 for buying and EGP 18.3962 for selling.
At state-owned banks Banque du Caire, Banque Misr, and the National Bank of Egypt, the greenback registered EGP 17.95 for buying and EGP 18.20 for selling, while the price stood at EGP 17.95-18.16 for buying and EGP 18.2-18.45 for selling at private banks.
The highest buying offer at banks on Monday was recorded by Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank at EGP 18.16 for buying and EGP 18.45 for selling.
Meanwhile, analysts ruled out that the exchange rate would be impacted by the recent terrorist events in Egypt, notably the bombing of the St. Peter and St. Paul Church on Monday.
Head of the treasury at a foreign bank operating in the Egyptian market, Tamer Youssef, said the impact of terrorist events is likely to unfold on the tourism sector, and consequently, on foreign exchange revenues. “However, tourism is already struggling and banks do not rely on that sector for hard cash,” he added. “The exchange rate has not and will not be impacted by these events.”
He noted that foreign available hard cash has been increasing at banks as the price hits EGP 18.
He stressed that maintaining the rate between EGP 17-18 at banks may be required to keep the inflow of foreign currencies at banks and cover the demand.
