As of Tuesday, the banking system had pulled in USD 2.6 bn since the float of the EGP, according to a statement by CBE Governor Tarek Amer picked up Al Borsa. Amer claims that this is double what the banks took during the first week of since the float which the newspaper puts at USD 1.3 bn. Al Mal is quoting Amer as having said that Wednesday saw the banks take in USD 200 mn, which puts the current tally at USD 2.8 bn. Amer reportedly said the banking system is averaging intakes of USD 300 mn daily. (Deputy Finance Ministry Ahmed Kouchouk cited outdated CBE data, telling Reuters’ Andrew Torchia the banking system took in about USD 1.5 bn in net hard currency inflows since the float, “around 10 to 15 times the level of weekly inflows before the EGP was freed.)

”Egyptian authorities are “happy” with movements in the financial markets and the increasing inflows of FX to the banking system since the EGP float, said Kouchouk. Volatility after the float was “natural,” Kouchouk says, and the movement did not constitute a “surprise or concern.” He added that “banks are competing, we are seeing that rates are fluctuating, each bank has its own buying and selling rate — all the ingredients of a flexible, efficient system are there now … [the central bank is] very happy with what’s happening.” Kouchouk said that  He also estimated that foreign holdings of government securities have increased by USD 700-900 mn since the float.

(Elsewhere, Reuters reports that the Cabinet Information and Decision Support Center is claiming that banks have provided clients with c. USD 2.2 bn in FX since the float.)

The government will decide on when it will hold investor roadshows for the planned eurobond issuance next week, Kouchouk said. He added that, while the weaker EGP will inflate the cost of energy and food imports, it will also increase some revenue streams and so would not have a big impact on state finances, keeping the government on track to cut the primary deficit, eliminating it by next year.