Comparing Wednesday’s price for 21-karat gold to the price recorded on Tuesday of EGP 1,990, it witnessed a 0.5% decrease of EGP 20.

Meanwhile, a 24-karat gram is priced at EGP 2,251 on Wednesday after registering EGP 2,274 the previous day, while an 18-karat gram dropped from EGP 1,688 to EGP 1,706, the EGAJTD says.

The gold pound is priced at EGP 15,760 on Wednesday after it was EGP 15,920 the previous day.

Internationally, the gold ounce is priced at $1,950 on Wednesday, with a decrease of $15 compared to yesterday’s price of $1,965. On Monday, it reached $2,000—the highest since March 2022.

Today’s decrease in prices comes as the market awaits the imminent interest rate decision of the US Federal Reserve. The US Federal Reserve’s decision to be announced later on Wednesday on whether to press ahead with its monetary tightening campaign or pause interest rate rises in the face of the worst banking turmoil since the 2008 financial crisis.

Financial experts predict the Federal Reserve to take another interest rate hike, expecting it to reach all-time highs that will lead to a gold price surge.

The highest record of gold price was recorded in August 2020 at $2,075, according to Refinitiv data.

On the other hand, the second meeting of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) in 2023 is set to be held at the end of March to discuss the fate of exchange rates and interest rates in local banks after inflation rates in Egypt reached record high levels.

In 2022, Egypt hiked its key interest rates by a total of eight percentage points (800 bps) as a key tool to tame accelerated inflation.