Egypt’s central bank cuts interest rates 1%, third time in 2019

Egypt’s central bank has decided on Thursday to cut interest rates by 1 percent, reducing the credit and discount rates by 100 basis points to 13.75 percent.

The Central Bank of Egypt also reduced at its Monetary Policy Committee meeting the overnight deposit rate, overnight lending rate, and the main operation rate by 100 basis points to 13.25 percent, 14.25 percent, and 13.75 percent, respectively.

In August, Egypt’s headline and core inflation fell to 7.5 percent and 4.9 percent, respectively, the lowest in six years.

The growth of the real gross domestic product (GDP) has continued its upward trend to record 5.7  percent in the second quarter of 2019, compared to 5.6 percent during the financial year of 2018/2019.

The unemployment rate went down to 7.5 percent during the second quarter of 2019 down by 6 percentage points since its record high of 13.4 percent in 2013.

“The expansion of global economic activity weakened, as well the negative effect trade tensions the global growth outlook led to easing the tightening of financial conditions through cutting the interest rates” the central bank said.