The Egyptian pound weakened on Wednesday as importers geared up for the Islamic holy month of Ramadan and foreign currency inflows into banks declined, bankers and economists said. Banks were selling the US dollar for between 16.1-16.2 pounds, up from around 15.8 one day earlier. They were buying greenbacks from clients at around 16-16.1 pounds per dollar EGP1. "The pound's weakening today is due to a decline in foreign currency inflows into banks this week and because importers are increasing demand in preparation for Ramadan," said Hany Genena, head of research at Beltone Financial in Cairo. Inflows of foreign currency into the banking system picked up last month as foreign investment returned, with Egyptian treasuries seeing a massive rally that was eventually tempered by the stronger pound.

Source: Egypt Independent March 02, 2017 10:55 UTC