Good afternoon, friends, and happy Mother’s Day to all the moms (and honorary mothers) out there. We hope you each get the love, appreciation, and recognition you deserve today.

THE BIG STORY TODAY

Two foreign companies have submitted investment proposals worth a combined USD 270 mn to set up sodium cyanide facilities in Egypt, Asharq Business reports, citing two government sources. The proposals include one from Germany’s CyPlus to set up a USD 150 mn factory that would produce 30k tonnes of sodium cyanide per annum, and a separate USD 120 mn factory from an Austrian company.

State gas firm EGAS has signed off on the two companies’ requests for natural gas supplies for the factories, one of the sources is quoted as saying. The companies are currently looking at setting up their factories either in Alexandria or Ain Sokhna, the source said.

What is sodium cyanide? The solution is commonly used for gold extraction from low-grade ore, and can be used to extract other metals, including copper, zinc, and silver.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

Leading the conversation in the western news is the Bank of England’s decision to hold rates: Keeping rates at 5.25% came a day after the US Federal Reserve kept their interest rates as is. The BoE’s Monetary Policy Committee maintained the rate at this level for the fifth consecutive time. (Financial Times | CNBC)

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

  • Valu is coming to the EGX: EFG Holding’s fintech platform Valu plans to offer up to 25% of its shares on the EGX within a year. EFG Holding will announce more details “as soon as its board of directors makes a decision on this matter,” the company said in a disclosure to the EGX today (pdf).
  • The banking sector wrapped up 2023 with a slight decline in the capital adequacy ratio, with the metric hitting 18.6%, compared to the 19% recorded a year earlier.
  • Another Saint-Gobain project incoming: French glass and building materials manufacturer Saint-Gobain has laid the foundation stone for its third glass factory in Egypt with investments amounting EUR 175 mn in the Sokhna Industrial Zone.

?️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- A partly cloudy daw with a high of 22°C and low of 12°C, according to our favorite weather app.

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