THIS EVENING: Qatar is planning to ramp up investments in Egypt

Good afternoon friends, and happy hump day. There are plenty of stories hitting our news cycle as we approach the midpoint of this cooler weather week.

THE BIG STORY TODAY

Qatar makes investment pledges at investment forum: Qatar’s Al Mana Group plans to invest “at least” USD 60 mn in Egypt in 2024, Asharq Business quotes Vice Chairman and CEO Saud Al Mana as saying. The investments will likely be earmarked for an automotive assembly plant in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, Al Mana said, with the company still considering which automotive brand it intends to set up the plant with. Al Mana’s remarks come on the sidelines of the Egyptian-Qatari Investment Forum earlier today, during which Egyptian and Qatari companies signed a number of unspecified MoUs, according to a Trade and Industry Ministry statement.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

It’s a mixed bag in the international press this afternoon: About 200k Palestinians are evacuating to the south of Gaza to escape the worsening conditions in the north as patients, newborns, and medics are left stranded in and around the hospitals Israel is attacking with no electricity and dwindling supplies, reports the Associated Press. After pressure from the US to limit civilian casualties, Israel’s Economy and Industry Minister, Nir Barakat, reportedly told Bloomberg that the military will achieve its objective with “minimal collateral damage.” Meanwhile in Russia, almost no oil is being sold below the US-led price cap of 60 USD, say western officials quoted in the Financial Times, forcing countries to figure out other ways to reinforce their economic sanctions. UBS expects the US Federal Reserve to cut interest rates by as much as 2.75% in 2024 on the back of slower growth, rising unemployment, and disinflation, according to CNBC.

** CATCH UP QUICK on the top stories from today’s EnterpriseAM:

• We’re getting more gas from Israel as the Tamar field resumes production: Israeli natural gas exports to Egypt have risen by 60% to 350-400 mn cubic feet a day, up from 250 mn earlier this month.
• Fitch Ratings has downgraded the credit ratings of three major Egyptian banks a week after it cut the country’s sovereign credit rating deeper into junk territory. The agency cut the ratings of National Bank of Egypt, CIB, and Banque du Caire to B- from B, reflecting the impact of the government’s credit profile on the lenders.
• The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has agreed to extend USD 3 bn of credit facilities to Egyptian companiesto help support their infrastructure projects across Africa.

⛅TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Look for a high of 27°C during the daytime with the temperature dropping to a cooler 20°C in the evening, our favorite weather app tells us.