(Bloomberg) -- Two weeks after Nigeria, Africa's biggest economy, allowed the naira to weaken, Egypt's central bank Governor Tarek Amer is talking up the merits of a cheaper pound. His devaluation of the exchange rate in March by the most in 13 years has had little effect, as a deepening current-account deficit and dwindling reserves led to a 25 percent premium for U.S. dollars in the black market. The spread between the pound's official rate and its 12-month forwards has widened to a level not seen since the eve of the depreciation in March.
To contact the reporter on this story: Ahmed A. Namatalla in Cairo at anamatalla@bloomberg.net. To contact the editors responsible for this story: Samuel Potter at spotter33@bloomberg.net, Dana El Baltaji, Srinivasan Sivabalan
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