RIYADH: The Central Bank of Egypt sold three-month treasury bills at an all-time high value, amounting to 61.8 billion Egyptian pounds ($3.2 billion), in an auction. 

The central bank data revealed that banks and institutions offered an amount of 170.8 billion Egyptian pounds for the short-term bills in the tender, according to Arabic newspaper Asharq.

The bank issues periodic weekly bids on behalf of the Ministry of Finance in order to finance the country’s general budget deficit.

This happens as the world's largest wheat importer is intensifying its efforts to confront the challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic as well as the Russia-Ukraine crisis. 

Egypt has been hit hard by the soaring oil and commodity prices, with the Egyptian pound further devaluing against the dollar and soaring inflation.

Earlier this month, Egypt’s stock exchange saw its market cap rise by a record 51.8 billion Egyptian pounds in August despite continued monetary policy tightening. 

In August, Egypt’s president accepted the resignation of central bank governor Tarek Amer, who was replaced by Hassan Abdalla as an acting governor.