Good morning, friends. It seems that a lot of us are still in holiday mode, with the flow of local business news yet to properly pick up after the Eid Al Adha break. Nevertheless, we’ve got a surprisingly packed issue for you today, with the nation’s talking heads’ responses to the decision to temporarily extend power cuts, capital markets news, M&A news, and much more for you to read through this morning.

FX WATCH-

The USD rose above 48 EGP for the first time since April, jumping by around EGP 0.70 yesterday. The rate settled at EGP 48.20 by the end of the day at the Central Bank of Egypt and other local lenders.

The weakening of the EGP against the greenback could be due to a pile up of orders for hardcash after Egyptian banks shut their doors for the Eid Al Adha break, Al Arabiya Business’ Fahima Zayed noted (watch, runtime: 1:55). Economist Mustafa Badra pointed to investors settling their positions ahead of the fiscal year end as one of the reasons behind the sudden increase of FX prices yesterday, ruling out that similar increases would happen in the coming days (watch, runtime: 4:56).

AT THE BOURSE-

EGX30 logged its biggest gains in more than a month at yesterday’s close, rising 2.4% to finish its fifth consecutive session in the green. The volley of gains has now brought the index up 8.7% YTD.

Some are hopeful that the trend will continue: El Suk Brokerage board member Mohamed Atta told CNBC Arabia he expects the EGX30 to reach new highs in the third quarter of the year on the back of the ”low market value of shares and their good financial performance” (watch, runtime: 11:42).

PSA-

WEATHER- It’s another hot day in Cairo today, with a high of 39°C and a low of 28°C, according to our favorite weather app.

As usual, it’s a little cooler over in Alexandria, with a high of 33°C and a low of 24°C.

** DID YOU KNOW that we now cover Saudi Arabia and the UAE?

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Missed this week’s Inside Industry? In our weekly vertical exploring all things industry and manufacturing, we looked at what kinds of policies industry would like to see from the soon-to-be-announced new government. Enterprise spoke with several industry players, who shed light on what areas the government should prioritize amid ongoing global and regional challenges impacting Egyptian industry. You can check out the story here.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

#1- The third Chicago Booth Executive Program has kicked off in El Gouna: The two-week session runs from 22 June until 5 July and will offer executives from the Egyptian public and private sectors the skills to help them “become better leaders for their organization and support Egypt’s growth in the years ahead.”

#2- Attention, green-minded investors: Financial Regulatory Authority head Mohamed Farid will be giving the keynote address at the British Egyptian Business Association’s (BEBA) upcoming seminar on the upcoming voluntary carbon market at the Conrad Cairo Hotel on Tuesday 9 July. Check out the details here.

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-

Expect a big week of politics to dominate headlines in the global business press, though AI and the stock market (is a correction finally in the cards?) aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.

Elections will be the big theme, with three televised debates setting up a high-stakes week for incumbents on both sides of the pond:

  • French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal takes on his top right- and left-wing challengers on Tuesday;
  • Across the Channel, sitting Prime Minister Rishi Sunak goes head-to-head with Labour’s Keir Starmer in a leaders’ debate on the BBC this Wednesday;
  • Joe Biden takes on Donald Trump this Thursday in the first of two televised debates. (They will meet again on 10 September.)

French voters go to the polls in snap parliamentary elections this coming Sunday — anFT poll suggests voters trust the right-wing Rassemblement National more on the economy than they do Emmanuel Macron’s centrist bloc. And voters in Iran follow suit this Friday, casting their votes for a new president.

HEAT is also in the headlines after Saudi Arabia confirmed more than 1.3k pilgrims died during this year’s Hajj — the vast majority of the deaths were heat-related — and as much of the US and Canada swelters under a heat dome.

WAR WATCH- Netanyahu says his assault on Gaza will enter a more “targeted” phase “very soon.” The Israeli leader was speaking in his first televised interview since October of last year. Meanwhile, an Israeli air assault killed eight people at an aid distribution center yesterday.

*** 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: We look at how adult education programs are training up Egypt’s workforce to adapt to and hopefully thrive in an ever-changing economy.

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