Good morning, friends, and welcome to the accidental low-key good news issue of your morning read. No, there’s not peace in Gaza. The EGP hasn’t floated and nobody’s given us a USD 18 bn gift. And yet we have (just about) not a single downbeat story for you this morning. (We didn’t plan it this way, it just … is.)

The basics: CEO Ashraf Sabry goes deep with us about how fintech giant Fawry fought off a hack by LockBit, showing that good leaders don’t just deliver (and communicate) in good times, but also when times are more difficult. Tourism arrivals were up significantly in October despite the outbreak of war in Gaza, and Tourism Minister Ahmed Issa is feeling positive about his 12-month target. Issa and his team worked overtime after the outbreak of the crisis to reassure global partners and bring in smart (policy and financial) measures to preserve demand. And after three years of steep losses, Beltone Financial turned profitable in 9M 2023 under a new shareholder that brought in a new leadership team and a clear vision for a turnaround.

Performances under stress by Issa, Khorshid and Sabry emphasize that in crisis and in good times alike, it’s all about leadership — about having both the courage to act and to trust your team to execute.

And last, but certainly not least: There’s cautious optimism that Egyptian diplomacy could deliver an extension of the ceasefire in Gaza.

^^ We have more on all of this in this morning’s news well, below.

PSA- Sellers, start coughing up that FX: The regulatory amendments to the Unified Tax Law, requiring businesses to settle their value-added tax dues in FX if they collect payment for their product or service offered in foreign currency, went into effect last week.

Price controls on sugar coming? Merchants have 10 days to regulate skyrocketing sugar prices before the Supply Ministry asks the cabinet to consider introducing price controls, Supply Minister Ali El Moselhy told Asharq Business (watch, runtime: 1:17).

Price spike: A sugar supply gap has pushed prices to soar up to EGP 50 per kilo and pushed the Supply Ministry to tap into its reserves to help fill the gap. Egypt currently has 5.5 months of sugar in reserve.

The government has tried to get a handle on the shortage in recent weeks by temporarilybanning companies from selling to traders, trying to enforce informal price cuts, and increasing purchases from overseas suppliers. Sugar was trading at EGP 42.50 per kilo yesterday — if you can find it on shelves.

HAPPENING TODAY-

Shoukry in Barcelona: Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and a delegation of Arab and Islamic officials are in Barcelona today to attend the Regional Forum of the Union of the Mediterranean, which will focus on Israel’s war on Gaza, the Foreign Ministry said yesterday. The delegation will then head to New York tomorrow to participate in a UN Security Council briefing session on Gaza.

Remember: The delegation is visiting the five permanent members of the Security Council in a bid to push for a ceasefire in Gaza. It has so far touched down in Beijing, Moscow, London, and Paris. Egypt and Arab countries have put together a draft Security Council resolution to overcome “existing obstacles and imbalances” to the entry of aid into Gaza.

HAPPENING THIS WEEK-

#1- COP28 kicks off: Dubai will host the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference from 30 November to 12 December, bringing together global leaders in science, policy, and business to look into fast-tracking the transition to green energy, slashing emissions, and transforming climate finance. Check out the full agenda here.

** Today’s issue of Enterprise Climate will have the inside track on what you need to know about COP28.

#2- OPEC+ meeting: The alliance of oil producers is meeting on Thursday to decide on next year’s production targets. The meeting was initially scheduled for Sunday, but was pushed back after the alliance members failed to reach a consensus on the output quotas for African members.

We’ll have a better idea of where US and EU interest rates are headed on Thursday when fresh inflation data lands. Euro area figures and the US personal consumption expenditures price index are expected to show inflation slowing to its weakest rate since early 2021 — forecasts which if correct will further stoke optimism that rates on both sides of the Atlantic have reached their peak. Bloomberg has more.

ELECTION 2023-

Egyptian expats go to polls: Egyptians abroad go to polls on 1-3 December to choosebetween incumbent President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, Al Wafd Party’s Abdel Sanad Yamama, the Egyptian Social Democratic Party’s Farid Zahran, and the Republican People Party’s Hazem Omar.

Voters here at home will cast their ballots on 10-12 December. First-round results are due on 18 December and a runoff, if necessary, will take place in early January 2024.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

Gaza is dominating the international front pages this morning, with the world’s media all focused on the latest on the prisoner swap between Hamas and Israel. We have more details in this morning’s news well, below. (Associated Press | Reuters | Bloomberg | Financial Times | New York Times | Washington Post | Wall Street Journal | BBC)

DATA POINT- Goods worth a combined USD 63 bn have been released from our ports since the beginning of the year, Customs Authority head El Shahat El Ghatwary told Asharq Business yesterday. However, some USD 5 bn-worth of goods remains stuck at ports, only a marginal improvement from the USD 5.5 bn figure recorded at the end of May.

SIGN OF THE TIMES- An ATM for gold? Gold jewelry manufacturer Master Gold Egypt has launched Egypt’s first gold ATM in partnership with local fintech company Finway, according to Ahram Gate. The machines allow users to buy gold bars and coins and will soon be widely available in malls across Egypt. Watch the machine in action here.

Sounds crazy but it just might work. Gold prices have been hitting never-before-seen highs as Egyptians rush to buy the precious metal as a hedge against a weakening EGP and a looming devaluation expected in the weeks following the presidential election. The price of 24-carat gold has now climbed above EGP 3,200 per gram.

ICYMI-

Missed this week’s Inside Industry? In our weekly vertical exploring all things industry and manufacturing, we looked at the details and potential benefits of AfCFTA and the challenges the continent faces to implement it.

*** It’s Blackboard day: We have our weekly look at the business of education in Egypt, from pre-K through the highest reaches of higher ed.

In today’s issue: What are international schools in Egypt doing to regulate the use of generative AI in classrooms?

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