The Central Bank of Egypt kept the pound steady at 8.78 per dollar at its regular auction on Tuesday, selling USD120 million to cover multinational companies' needs to clear payment backlogs for the import of staples and pharmaceutical goods. Three black market traders said the pound had weakened on Tuesday to EGP10.10 per dollar compared to around EGP10.05 per dollar a day earlier. "There is increased demand and there was also speculation ahead of the auction that the central bank would devalue the pound and that increased demand for dollars too," one trader said. (Reuters)