The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has kept overnight deposit and lending rates unchanged at 9.25% and 10.25% respectively for the sixth consecutive time in its meeting last Thursday because the annual general inflation rate continued to decline as it registered 6.39% in July, compared to 7.26% in June, and the core annual inflation rate retreated to 6.34% in July, down from 7.04% in June, due to the retreat in food prices. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose by 5.2% in Q3 of FY 2011/2012, after witnessing slight increases in Q1 and Q2 with average growth rate of 0.35%. The GDP witnessed an increase of 1.8% in the first nine months of FY 2011/2012, boosted by the recovery of construction and building sectors. The political and economic changes in Egypt and the Arab countries as well as the continuous deterioration of the global economy may continue to affect the investment and consumer decisions.
