Egypt Holds Record Currency Sale After Gulf Aid Boosts Reserves

Egypt held its biggest regular currency sale for banks on Thursday, seeking to end a dollar shortage that has crippled its economy for more than two years.

The central bank sold $298.8 million to lenders, almost four times the amount offered at any sale since it started the practice in December 2012.

The regulator said it will cut the frequency of the sales to three per week from four, and announce the amount before each one. Since December it’s been selling $40 million at each regular auction, with so-called exceptional sales of larger amounts being held periodically to relieve pent-up demand.

Egypt is putting to use $6 billion of cash aid received from its Gulf Cooperation Council allies to stimulate the economy after four years of political unrest.