Egypt central bank raised its key overnight deposit rate by 200 bps to 18.25%. Officials emphasized the need for higher borrowing costs to control high inflation forecasts, despite economic activity moderating. Headline inflation reached a record high of 31.9% YoY in February, while the core reading hit 40.3%. The bank has maintained its current inflation targets of 7.0% by Q4 2024 and 5.0% by Q4 2026. The spread between the parallel market and official rates has been widening due to speculation of a fourth currency devaluation since last March.