Egypt hikes interest rates by 2 pct to contain inflation

CAIRO, March 30 (Xinhua) -- Egypt's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided to raise the interest rates of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) by 200 basis points in a new bid to contain high inflation, the CBE said on Thursday.

The deposit and lending rates were raised to 18.25 percent and 19.25 percent, respectively, while the rate of the main operation and the discount rate were increased to 18.75 percent, the CBE said in a statement.