Why Rate Increase Is No Answer to 30 Percent Inflation in Egypt
- Analysts say price gains driven by costs rather than demand
- Survey predicts no change at central bank meeting on Sunday
The National Bank of Egypt in Cairo.
Photographer: Shawn Baldwin/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Egypt’s central bank is likely to hold interest rates on Sunday, even with inflation still soaring after the removal of currency controls last year.
Six of seven economists surveyed by Bloomberg expect the central bank to hold the benchmark rate at 14.75 percent when policy makers meet in Cairo. It last raised rates by 300 basis points on Nov. 3, the day it floated the pound as part of a plan to end a crippling foreign-currency shortage and secure a $12 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund.