THIS EVENING: EGX30 drops nearly 7%

Good afternoon, friends. It’s shaping up to be another relatively busy afternoon as we race towards the weekend.

THE BIG STORY TODAY

EGX30 nosedived by 6.8% at today’s close amid heavy selloff from local investors. CIB was the best performer on the index for falling only by 1%. This came one day after a 3.8% increase saw the market achieve a historical high surpassing the 30,000 points level for the first time ever.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

Leading the conversation in the international business press since this morning: A court has blocked a USD 55 bn pay package for Tesla CEO Elon Musk, striking down what was set to be the largest ever public market remuneration package, initially approved by Tesla in 2018. Shareholders took the matter to court after feeling misled about how involved Musk was in curating the plan and the extent of his influence on members of the board. (Wall Street Journal | Financial Times | The Verge | Bloomberg)

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

• Is an IMF package imminent? Cairo has been abuzz since midday yesterday with chatter that the Madbouly government is nearing a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund.
• IMF slashes our growth outlook: The IMF has downgraded its fiscal year 2023-2024 growth forecast for Egypt to 3.0% from October’s projection of 3.6% in its updated World Economic Outlook.
• One of the region’s leading law firms is about to get a helping hand from AI: Our friends at Cairo-based arbitration firm Youssef + Partners (Y+P) has signed a strategic partnership with American legal profession-focussed generative AI startup Harvey to integrate the technology into the firm’s legal practices and client services.

HELP GAZA-

Want to support relief efforts in Gaza, but don’t know how? We’ve got you. More than 1 mn people in Gaza have been thrown from their homes and every human being there lacks access to food, water, and fuel amid the most intense bombardment any population has endured this century.

The folks at Talabat are processing donations for a range of Gaza relief appeals by charities including the Egyptian Food Bank and Misr El Kheir. Pay in EGP using your credit card.

Or check out our list of charities to which you can make direct donations via bank deposit and / or Fawry.

⛅ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Expect a partly cloudy day with a high of 15°C and a low of 13°C, according to our favorite weather app.