Egyptian pound strengthens

A man stands outside an exchange bureau in Cairo.

A man stands outside an exchange bureau in Cairo.

Published Feb 3, 2014

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Cairo - The Egyptian pound strengthened fractionally at a central bank currency sale on Monday and remained unchanged on the black market.

The central bank sold $38.6 million to banks with a cut-off price of 6.9516 pounds to the dollar, compared with 6.9517 at its last auction on Thursday.

The bank had offered to sell up to $40 million.

On the black market, a trader said the dollar was offered at 7.33 pounds on Monday, unchanged from a day before.

The central bank introduced dollar currency sales a year ago. Last week it held a $1.5 billion exceptional auction, its largest ever, to restock the market with much needed dollars and fight the unofficial currency market.

The central bank has burned through at least $20 billion - roughly half its reserves - supporting the pound since Egypt's 2011 uprising scared off tourists and foreign investors. - Reuters

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