In the auction launched Sunday, the yield on the 273-day T-bills averaged 23.341 percent, up from 23.059 percent last week.

The CBE accepted 76 bids with a value of EGP 5.58 billion ($181 million), out of 203 bids submitted with a value of EGP 32.66 billion.

The average yield on the 91-day T-bills amounted to 21.924 percent, up from 20.924 percent last week.

The number of accepted bids reached 239 with a value of EGP 4.47 billion ($143.76 million), out of 519 bids submitted with a value of EGP 58.55 billion.

The increase in the average yield reflects the latest 200 basis-point interest rate hike announced by the CBE in late March.

On 4 April,  the CBE auctioned T-bills with a total value of EGP 38 billion, including 91-day, 182-day, 273-day, and 364-day tenors.

The accepted bids amounted to EGP 4.97 billion, with an average yield of 22.3 percent.

The CBE typically issues T-bills on behalf of the Ministry of Finance to fund the budget deficit.

Egypt’s budget deficit rose to over EGP 367 billion (nearly $12 billion), or four percent of gross domestic product (GDP), during the first half (1H) of FY2022/2023 (July-December 2022).

Egypt’s external debt rose by 5.1 percent in the fourth quarter (4Q) of 2022, reaching $162.94 billion, up from 154.94 billion recorded in the previous quarter, according to recent data released by the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development.