CBE Sells EGP 2.5 Bln Reopened Bonds

Central bank of Egypt (CBE) sold EGP 2.5 billion ($414.24 million) in five and seven-year bonds on Monday, the same amount it had initially sought, the finance ministry said.

CBE sold EGP 1.5 billion of reopened five-year bonds, EGP 1 billion of reopened seven-year bonds.

The average yield for the five-year bonds was 16.62 percent, from a range from 16.51 to 16.67 percent. While the seven-year yield was 16.92 percent in a range from 16.87 to 16.94 percent.

The five-year bonds which mature on April 10, 2017, carry a 16.55 percent coupon. The seven-year bonds which mature on April 3, 2019, carry a 16.85 percent coupon.

Settlement for the bonds will take place on June 12. Government bonds are sold by CBE on behalf of the Finance Ministry.

Egypt’s uprising hammered the economy by chasing away tourists and foreign investors. The interim government has gone through more than half of the country’s foreign reserves and has been for months been negotiating a loan deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Egypt’s economy contracted by 4.3 percent in the first quarter of 2011 and flat-lined in the following three quarters, Reuters reported.