Egypt’s central bank governor says pound depreciation not worrying

Egyptian central bank governor Hisham Ramez has sought to calm local market nerves following a surprise 2.5 percent weakening of the Egyptian pound against the U.S. dollar over recent days.

The central bank allowed the currency to depreciate by 20 piasters in its official foreign exchange auctions on Thursday and Sunday, driving it to its lowest level against the dollar since auctions began in 2012.

However, in a television interview on Sunday night, Ramez said the pound's fall should not alarm anyone.

“There is nothing to worry about from the dollar’s rise (against the pound) ... this is a normal movement. It only moved 2.5 percent and this happens a lot in markets,” he told Egyptian television channel Al-Yawm.

“I do not have a specific price (for the dollar) in mind. The move is natural. We compare the pound against a basket of currencies, not just one,” said Ramez.

“Egypt’s main trading partner is Europe and the pound has been very strong against the euro recently. The euro has fallen (against the pound), it is worth 8.70 Egyptian pounds, down from 9.75 previously," he added.

($1 = 7.7201 Egyptian pounds)