Egypt: Parliament Confirms Reappointment of Central Bank Governor

Egypt's Central Bank Governor Tarek Amer speaks at a news conference in Cairo, Egypt, November 3, 2016. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany
Egypt's Central Bank Governor Tarek Amer speaks at a news conference in Cairo, Egypt, November 3, 2016. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany
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Egypt: Parliament Confirms Reappointment of Central Bank Governor

Egypt's Central Bank Governor Tarek Amer speaks at a news conference in Cairo, Egypt, November 3, 2016. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany
Egypt's Central Bank Governor Tarek Amer speaks at a news conference in Cairo, Egypt, November 3, 2016. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany

Egypt's parliament approved the appointment of central bank governor Tarek Amer to a second four-year term on Thursday, state media reported.

The parliament, in a recess, held an emergency session to vote on the decision by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to reappoint Amer, whose first term ended on Wednesday. The approval was required under the constitution.

Amer was first appointed in 2015 when Egypt was in a currency crisis. A three-year IMF economic reform program included a sharp devaluation of the pound currency, the introduction of a value-added tax and the elimination of subsidies on most fuel prices.

"Clearly the heavy lifting is done but then we need to have someone to protect these gains and build on them," said Mohamed Abu Basha, head of macroeconomic analysis at EFG Hermes.

Steps still needed include a full transition to inflation-targeting and further development of the banking sector, especially digitalization and pushing banks to lend to wider sectors, Abu Basha said.

Allen Sandeep, head of research at Naeem Brokerage, said: "The challenge now will be to walk a balanced path between easing monetary policy and keeping inflation in check."

Governors are allowed only two terms under the constitution.



Bitcoin Drops to 11-day Low amid Tech Selloff

FILE PHOTO: Sparks strike representation of cryptocurrency Bitcoin in this illustration taken November 24, 2024. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Sparks strike representation of cryptocurrency Bitcoin in this illustration taken November 24, 2024. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
TT

Bitcoin Drops to 11-day Low amid Tech Selloff

FILE PHOTO: Sparks strike representation of cryptocurrency Bitcoin in this illustration taken November 24, 2024. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Sparks strike representation of cryptocurrency Bitcoin in this illustration taken November 24, 2024. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Bitcoin fell below $100,000 on Monday, hitting its lowest in 11 days, in a move analysts attributed to a wave of caution after the surging popularity of a Chinese artificial intelligence model sparked a selloff in Western AI-related stocks.

The world's biggest cryptocurrency struggled to make gains last week, as a rally that had seen it break above $100,000 after US President Donald Trump's election ran out of steam, Reuters reported.

At 1156 GMT, bitcoin was at $98,852.17, down around 6% on the day, having fallen sharply in early trading to hit its lowest since Jan. 16.

Technology stocks plunged, as traders worried that Chinese AI startup DeepSeek could threaten Western companies' dominance of the sector, in a move some called AI's "Sputnik moment", referring to the former Soviet Union's launch of a satellite that marked the start of the space race in the late 1950s.

Bitcoin's losses are "seemingly driven by some risk-off sentiment circulating the markets currently due to DeepSeek," wrote eToro analyst Simon Peters.

Geoffrey Kendrick, global head of digital asset research at Standard Chartered, said a decline in Nasdaq futures had hurt crypto markets, but that disappointment over the Trump administration's announcement about a cryptocurrency stockpile had put digital assets more at risk of a sharp selloff.

Crypto failed to feature in Trump's day-one announcements after taking office last week, leaving some investors disappointed. In an executive order on Thursday, Trump created a working group to draft new crypto rules and explore a crypto stockpile, while the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) spiked accounting guidance that the industry said had stymied crypto adoption.

The prospect of interest rates staying higher for longer also hurt riskier assets, said Thomas Puech, CEO of digital asset hedge fund Indigo.

US Federal Reserve policymakers meet this week and are expected to keep interest rates on hold.