CBE Keeps Interest Rates Unchanged

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) said in a statement on Wednesday that it kept key interest rates unchanged.

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept the overnight deposit rate, overnight lending rate, and the rate of the main operation unchanged at 8.25%, 9.25%, and 8.75%, respectively, after cutting rates in both September and November of 2020.

The discount rate was also kept unchanged at 8.75%.

The annual inflation rate in Egypt was 4.5% in March of 2021, unchanged from the previous month. Main upward pressure came from prices of food (1.1% vs -0.5% in February), attributed to the hike in costs of some commodities such as fruits and meat ahead of the Ramadan month.

On a monthly basis, consumer prices inched up 0.6%, the biggest increase in four months.