Governor of the Central Bank, Hesham Ramez stressed that the law completely prohibits the Egyptian public sector companies from dealing or contracting in US dollars, asking manufacturers to report any company that violates these regulations.
During a recent meeting with the head of the NileSat company, the governor urged him not to deal with the Egyptian satellite channels in US dollars, as well as to limit the dollar transactions with foreign channels. He pointed out that the company had begun to respond to his request.
On the sidelines of the closing session of the Conference of African Economic Blocs in Sharm el-Sheikh yesterday, Ramez added that the bank had been criticized after it had passed resolutions that succeeded in suppressing black market activity, which amounts to around US$35 billion annually.
"Maximum deposit and withdrawal limits in US dollars, consistent with global standards, have been set," Ramez said.
"I will continue my work, and we have to see the glass as half full. Most importers have begun to deal with the banks, which started to reach numbers reaching $160 million a day, after applying controls," he added.
The Central Bank grants this weekly sum to the banks operating in the domestic market to import basic goods, and finance the purchase of wheat and oil. This led to the disappearance of queues at the banks of al-Ahly and Misr, Ramez said.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
