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Egypt Independent
The US dollar exchange rate made a new record decline against the Egyptian pound, falling below £E16 for the first time since February 2017; after it had settled during the last period at £E16.05 for purchase and £E16.15 for sale.
The US dollar exchange rate at the National Bank of Egypt reached £E16 for purchase, and £E16.10 for sale, while it decreased in the Commercial International Bank to £E15.98 for purchase, and £E16.08 for sale.
The Central Bank of Egypt set rates at £E15.97 for purchase, and £E16.10 for sale.
Bankers attributed the decline to the availability of foreign exchange resources, the noticeable demand from foreign investors to buy government debt instruments and pumping more dollar resources into the local market.
A prominent banking source said that it is expected that the price of the dollar will drop to £E15.75 by the beginning of the new year, especially since the current supply of it exceeds the demand.
Banker Youssef Farouk explained that, “as the year is ending, banks have concluded their open position and dollar debt, and have no need for the dollar”. Farouk anticipates the US dollar to continue declining until the end of the year.
The former vice president of the BLOM Egypt Bank, Tarik Metwally, said “the dollar decline is normal”. He expected it “to continue with the improvement in trade balance and the increase in foreign exchange earnings from tourism, the remittances of Egyptians abroad and other sources”.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm.
