The US dollar exchange rate rose again against the Egyptian pound by three piasters on Wednesday to register EGP7.46 to the dollar on the official market. The USD has been fluctuating dramatically in the past two weeks after remaining stable for the past six months at EGP7.14. The dollar's value on the black market also rose as a result, registering EGP7.80. On Wednesday, the Central Bank of Egypt provided its seventh weekly bid on the dollar to local banks, valued at $40 million. The total value of the dollars for various local banks was $38.4 million, at a record EGP7.46 with a 3-piaster increase over the previous bid. The CBE's bids are aimed at increasing the amount of dollars held by Egyptian banks in order to meet the increasing demand by businesses for lines of credit.