Standard & Poor’s cut Egypt’s credit outlook to negative from stable, maintains B- rating: The decision was driven by continued FX shortages and deteriorating Gulf aid, Bloomberg reported. “Egypt’s external and fiscal vulnerabilities might increase further over the next 12 months,” S&P said in a statement. “This could dampen the country’s economic recovery and exacerbate sociopolitical challenges.” The rating puts Egypt on par with Argentina, Greece, and Pakistan, at five levels below pre-2011 ratings.

The ratings agency is also apparently predicting that future devaluation is in the cards, projecting an average central bank rate of EGP 9.50 for USD 1 in 2016, EGP 10.00 in 2017, EGP 10.50 in 2018, and EGP 11.00 in 2019, according to Al Mal. Despite the 14% devaluation in March, Standard & Poor’s continues to see Egypt’s monetary policy as inflexible, citing interference in the market by the CBE and the banking sector’s exposure to government risk. The CBE has upheld a rate of EGP 8.78 since its March devaluation, while the parallel market is currently holding steady at EGP 10.80 as of last evening, Al Mal reports.