CAIRO — Gucci Corner is the nickname for a bustling plaza at the private American University in Cairo, where well-heeled students hang out between classes and strut their imported fashions.

These days, though, even the privileged are feeling the squeeze of Egypt’s economic crisis.

Zeyad Mohamed, 19, a business student, said he was shocked to discover on a recent visit to a Mercedes-Benz showroom that his desired model would not be available for 18 months. “Normally I’m not interested in politics — if it doesn’t affect me, I don’t care,” Mr. Mohamed said, reflecting a disengagement that is typical among well-to-do youth. “But this is a problem. And things are getting more expensive.”

Wealthy Egyptians were among President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s most ardent supporters after he seized power in 2013, favoring stability and a harsh crackdown on Islamists, even at the cost of civil liberties. But that loyalty is being tested now, as Egypt’s severe shortage of foreign currency cripples businesses, impedes luxury imports and crimps their lifestyles. And that has prompted a tide of unusually sharp criticism of Mr. Sisi.

Mr. Sisi is using what scarce resources he has mainly to help the poor — and the seven million people on the state’s payroll — by propping up the value of Egypt’s currency. Politically, that makes sense: Mr. Sisi is mindful of the popular protests that drove President Hosni Mubarak from office in 2011. Even so, the poor have suffered from shortages of some staples, like cooking oil, while the rich are confronted with restrictions that amount to a sharp pinch, if not quite pain.