Egyptian pound steady on official market, stronger on black market

CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt’s pound held steady at a central bank dollar sale on Thursday, with the bank saying it sold $39 million at a cut-off price of 7.1401 pounds per dollar, unchanged from Wednesday’s rate.

In the unofficial market, the pound was slightly stronger, trading at 7.39 to the dollar, one trader said, compared with 7.38 on Wednesday.

The rate for dollar sales has stayed in a tight range since the beginning of June, after the bank allowed the pound to weaken in May. The central bank offered $40 million on Thursday.

The rates at which banks are allowed to trade dollars are determined by the results of central bank sales, giving the bank effective control over official exchange rates.