Egypt's central bank kept the pound steady at 7.73 per dollar at a foreign exchange auction on Tuesday, and the currency also held its own at exchange bureaux.
The central bank said it had offered $40 million and sold $37.8 million at a cut-off price of 7.7301 per dollar , unchanged from the last auction on Sundaye central bank kept the pound at 7.5301 for five months until last month, when it allowed it to weaken to 7.6301. On July 5, the bank let it slide a further 0.10 pounds.
Letting the pound weaken in a controlled way could boost exports and attract further investment, but also raises Egypt's large bill for imported fuel and food staples.
Two traders at exchange bureaus said the pound was changing hands at 7.88 per dollar, almost unchanged from Sunday.
The central bank gave banks permission in January to trade dollars up to LE0.10, more or less than the official rate, with an extra LE0.05 for currency exchange bureaux.
Egypt has sought to tame a once-thriving currency black market with measures such as a cap on dollar-denominated bank deposits.
