Economic uncertainty drives up Egypt borrowing cost
Worries about the value of the Egyptian pound, which dropped some 4 per cent in the past week, drive yields on Egyptian t-bills upwards
Yields on Egyptian 182-day T-bills rose at an auction on Thursday as a weakening Egyptian pound and uncertainty about the fate of a $4.8 billion IMF loan drove up the cost of government borrowing.
The average yield climbed to 14.104 per cent from 13.300 per cent at the last issue on Dec. 25. Last week's auction was cancelled.
"Rates have been on the rise after the political tension since the presidential decree," said Cairo-based fixed-income dealer Ahmed Kheir El Din. "The uncertainty about the IMF loan is also weighing on trader sentiment," he said.
CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's central bank said it would start foreign currency auctions on Sunday to conserve reserves that have fallen to a critical level, pointing to a deepening economic crisis as President Mohamed Mursi tries to calm political turmoil.
The announcement was posted on the bank's website on Saturday just two hours after Mursi used a major policy speech to declare the economy was showing signs of improvement.
"This is a massive, massive setback for them," said an economist based outside Egypt. "If the Egyptian pound is no longer freely convertible, then you're bound to undo eight years of successful and effective currency management."
BBC RADIO EGYPT WOULD FACE TUMOIL YEAR 2013
The central bank has spent more than $20 billion in foreign reserves to support the pound since a mass uprising against Hosni Mubarak in early 2011 chased away tourists and foreign investors.
RATINGS agency Standard and Poor's has downgraded Egypt's long-term credit rating because of "elevated" tensions over its political crisis, and warned it could be lowered further.
The country's long-term rating was lowered to B- from B because the turmoil has "weakened Egypt's institutional framework, and the increasingly polarised political discourse could diminish the effectiveness of policy-making," the agency said on Monday.
"A further downgrade is possible if a significant worsening of the domestic political situation results in a sharp deterioration of economic indicators such as foreign exchange reserves or the government's deficit," it said.
(WASHINGTON) – U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today released the following statement on Saturday’s final round of voting on Egypt’s draft constitution:
“Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood-led government will be claiming a victory after this Saturday’s referendum on Egypt’s new constitution. However, the stark reality is that this is a defeat for the Egyptian people. We must not forget that this new constitution not only fails to protect many Egyptians, but also fails to meet international standards for protecting basic human rights. In his attempt to solidify power, Morsi excluded the opposition parties and religious and ethnic minority groups from the drafting process. The Muslim Brotherhood-led government was then able to integrate sharia law into key aspects of the constitution, omitting pivotal protections for ethnic and religious minorities.
Egypt’s top prosecutor stirs new tensions by withdrawing resignation
By Associated Press
CAIRO — Egypt’s top prosecutor retracted his resignation on Thursday, a decision that could cause a new uproar in the country after he was accused of pressuring a judge not to release protesters opposed to the Islamist president.
The prosecutor, Talaat Abdullah, who was appointed by President Mohammed Morsi, told reporters he resigned on Monday “under pressure” and amid “abnormal circumstances” with prosecutors holding a sit-in in front of his office.
Supreme Constitutional Court claims statement made to foreign media by the presidency amounts to “slander”
The Supreme Constitutional Court said the presidency aimed to “undermine the reputation of this court internationally.” (DNE/ Hassan Ibrahim)
The Supreme Constitutional Court (SCC) has claimed that a statement released by the president’s assistant to foreign media “contains many falsehoods and inaccuracies.”
The SCC released a statement on Monday in response to a statement released by Essam Al-Haddad, the assistant to the president on foreign relations, which was published on Friday.
Egypt crisis: Morsi's hometown split by constitution row
President Morsi provokes passionate debate between supporters and detractors
Egypt's draft constitution has 63 pages and 236 articles on everything from individual rights, religion, and the role of the state. It's hard to read, harder to understand, but it's easy to see why it's causing such a storm.
And the people of Zagazig seem to take it seriously.
To try to take the political pulse outside the hothouse of the capital Cairo, we drove two hours north to this dusty town in the Nile Delta. It has a catchy name and a claim to fame - it's President Mohammed Morsi's hometown.
VIDEO: Mass protests reach Egypt's presidential palace, police withdraw
Central Security Forces withdraw from the mass protests into the presidential palace in Heliopolis
Zeinab El Gundy, Tuesday 4 Dec 2012
Egyptian protesters carry national flags and chant anti Muslim Brotherhood slogans during a demonstration in front of the presidential palace in Cairo, Egypt, Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012 (Photo: Reuters)
Ahram Online declares its full support for the strike action undertaken on Tuesday by a large number of major Egyptian newspapers and TV stations in defence of freedom of the press, freedom of expression, civil liberties and the rule of law. In view of our particular status as a web-based news outlet, however, we will maintain our updates throughout this crucial day of protest, not in contravention of the strike action, but in full solidarity with it. These decisions were consensually adopted by an all-staff meeting of Ahram Online, and in consultation with members of the board of the Press Syndicate and striking news media.
Security forces have withdrawn from the perimeter outside the presidential palace after receiving orders to go inside the palace.
Some protesters cheered the Central Security Forces (CSF) units after the end of the clashes, according to some news reports. The ministry of interior already issued an official statement declaring that President Morsi left the presidential palace after finishing a couple of meetings on Tuesday. It also added that the security forces practiced self-restraint after the protesters breached the barbed wire cordons around the palace.
Egypt’s political crisis widens with planned strikes, protest march to presidential palace
(Nasser Nasser/ Associated Press ) - A supporter of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi holds a banner with his picture and Arabic that reads, “yes for the constitutional declaration to stop corruption,” during a protest in front of Egypt’s top court, in Cairo, Egypt, Monday, Dec. 3, 2012. The Egyptian president’s top legal adviser says the country’s election commission has begun preparations for the referendum on Dec. 15 on a highly contentious draft constitution.
By Associated Press,
CAIRO — Egypt’s political crisis is widening, with plans for a huge march and a general strike Tuesday to protest the hurried drafting of a new constitution and decrees by President Mohammed Morsi that gave him nearly unrestricted powers.
