The exchange rate of the US dollar against the Egyptian pound has stabilised, after a brief period of being at a 10-month high.
The official rate at the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) on Monday reached EGP 17.8389 to buy and EGP 17.9738 to sell, almost unchanged from Sunday, when it scored EGP 17.8395 to buy and EGP 17.9672 to sell.
The dollar exchange rate hit its highest level in the past 10 months on Wednesday when it hit a record high of EGP 17.8395 to buy and EGP 17.9672 to sell, which was the highest since July 2017.
According to banking expert Mohamed Abdel Aal, the rise in the dollar exchange rate against the pound is not worrying. “On the contrary, the volatility of the price is normal under the supply and demand mechanism,” he explained.
Abdel Aal added that stabilising the price of the dollar continuously is not good, because this means that there are parties that support it, explaining that the price changes are not adopted in a short period, but must be over a period of time until the assessment is correct.
He expected that the trend will most likely be a slow decrease in the coming period, noting that the small rises witnessed in the past few days reflect the market’s strength, adding that it is normal due to increased demand by those performing Umrah and increased imports.
CBE Governor Tarek Amer said in previous statements that the CBE will not allow fluctuations in the exchange rate.
“We have a large foreign exchange reserve that can be tapped to prevent hikes or dips in the rate,” he noted.
He added that people need to get used to the price of the currency fluctuating.
