Egypt currency near record low

CAIRO, Aug 01 (AFP): The Egyptian pound plunged on Monday to a near all-time low of more than 19 to the dollar, in the world's number one wheat importer where prices have soared.
Egypt's currency has not fallen so sharply since December 2016 when it hit 19.3 to the US greenback after a drastic devaluation.
The central bank on Monday was buying one dollar for 19.01 pounds, compared with a rate of 15.6 in March. That amounts to a drop of about 22 per cent. In late March, inflation-hit Egypt also devalued its currency, which lost around 18 per cent of its value overnight.
Foreign currency reserves fell more than $7 billion in April and May to stand at $33.4 billion at the end of June, as a result of moves "to calm the markets" as well as "external debt repayments", the central bank said at the time.
The Arab world's largest country, where almost one-third of the population lives below the official poverty line, is grappling with inflation of around 15 per cent.
Most of Egypt's wheat imports came from Russia and Ukraine but Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February sent global prices soaring.