The US-Israeli war on Iran has expanded across the Gulf and beyond, upending global energy markets and trade, and virtually halting traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s crude oil travels.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi last week warned that the country was in a “state of near-emergency”, warning of renewed inflationary pressures.

Despite Egypt not having been directly hit by the war, the fighting has nonetheless pushed some shipping companies away from its Suez Canal, a key source of foreign currency.

Egypt’s import-dependent economy has proved highly sensitive to currency fluctuations in the past.

Inflation — 11.9% in January — peaked at nearly 40% in August 2023, on the back of a punishing economic crisis that has since eased, thanks in part to an over US$50 billion bailout, mainly from the UAE.