Egypt Lets Pound Slide Most in 13 Years in Step Toward Flotation
- Pound weakens almost 13% at central bank dollar sale
- Beltone Financial sees move as step toward managed flotation
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Egypt allowed the pound to weaken the most in 13 years as the North African nation became the latest emerging market to ease defense of its currency to conserve reserves and boost competitiveness.
The Central Bank of Egypt devalued the pound by almost 13 percent on Monday to 8.95 per dollar and said in a statement it would adopt a "more flexible exchange-rate" policy. The authority, which currently controls the currency at regular dollar sales, didn’t give details on what mechanism would be adopted. Egyptian stocks jumped the most since 2013 and Eurobonds rallied.