ECB to cut rates in June? The European Central Bank (ECB) will start cutting interest rates in June, Governing Council member Francois Villeroy de Galhau told French newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche over the weekend. “Bar a surprise, we should decide on the first cut at our next meeting on 6 June … Our cut early June will have to be followed by other cuts by year-end,” he said.

Where rates currently stand? The ECB kept rates unchanged when it met last Thursday, keeping the deposit rate at a record 4% in place since September.

Meanwhile in the US, June cuts are looking less likely: Traders have ruled out the Federal Reserve slashing rate over the summer — some have penciled in mid-September for when the Fed will start cutting rates, while some don’t see the Fed cutting rates at all this year, Reuters reports. This came in response to March’s inflation data coming in hotter than expected — consumer price inflation rose 3.5% y-o-y up from 3.2% the month before.

THE MARKETS THIS MORNING-

Major Asian benchmarks are all substantially in the red this morning, following Wall Street’s lead: Korea’s Kospi is off 2.1%, the Nikkei is down 1.6%, and the Hang Seng has lost 1.2%. The Shanghai composite is fairing a bit better — it’s off just 0.8% after China reported its economy grew 5.3% in 1Q 2024, beating expectations.

European and US stock futures are largely unchanged, but point to a lower opening later today.

EGX30

29,616

+3.9% (YTD: +19.0%)

USD (CBE)

Buy 48.29

Sell 48.43

USD (CIB)

Buy 48.3

Sell 48.4

Interest rates CBE

27.25% deposit

28.25% lending

Tadawul

12,708

+0.3% (YTD: +6.2%)

ADX

9,254

+0.2% (YTD: -3.4%)

DFM

4,244

0.0% (YTD: +4.5%)

S&P 500

5,062

-1.2% (YTD: +6.1%)

FTSE 100

7,966

-0.4% (YTD: +3.0%)

Euro Stoxx 50

4,984

+0.6% (YTD: +10.1%)

Brent crude

USD 90.10

-0.4%

Natural gas (Nymex)

USD 1.68

-0.4%

Gold

USD 2,398.40

+0.7%

BTC

USD 63,303.90

-0.7% (YTD: +49.2%)

THE CLOSING BELL-

The EGX30 closed with a 3.9% gain in the first session after the Eid break on turnover of EGP 4.8 bn (5.2% below the 90-day average). Local investors were net buyers. The index is up 19.0% YTD.

In the green: Qalaa Holdings (+19.6%), E-finance (+11.8%), and Elsewedy Electric (+7.1%).

In the red: Orascom Construction (-0.7%), Eastern Company (-0.6%), and Juhayna (-0.3%).

CORPORATE ACTIONS-

#1- GB Corp will pay out dividends of EGP 0.20 per share on its 2023 earnings, it said in an EGX disclosure (pdf).

#2- Cheesemaker Domty will pay out dividends worth EGP 0.50 per share on its2023 earnings, it said in an EGXdisclosure (pdf).

#3- SAIB bank will pay out dividends of USD 0.50 per share, it said in an EGX disclosure (pdf).

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