The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) decided to maintain the overnight deposit rate at 12.25%, while the overnight lending rate remained unchanged at 13.25%, Invest-Gate reports.

The main operation and discount rates were also kept unchanged at 12.75% each, according to a press release on January 16.

“The MPC decided that keeping key policy rates unchanged remains consistent with achieving the inflation target of 9 percent (±3 percentage points) in 2020 Q4 and price stability over the medium term,” the CBE noted.

However, economists expect more rate cuts in order to “help Egypt meet its targets of slashing debt-service costs and boosting lending to fuel business activity,” according to Bloomberg.