The Egyptian pound hit a record low this week, trading at 56 to the US dollar. (EPA Images pic)CAIRO: Egypt's central bank said on Thursday it was hiking interest rates for the first time since 2024, as the country faces mounting economic pressure and inflation driven by the Middle East war.
"The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) decided to raise the key policy rates by 100" basis points, it said in a statement.
"The overnight deposit rate, overnight lending rate and the rate of the main operation were raised to 20.0%, 21.0% and 20.5%, respectively."
Egypt has largely been spared direct involvement in the Middle East war. The fighting, however, has pushed some shipping companies away from its Suez Canal, a key source of foreign currency.
