Good morning, friends. To wrap up this shorter-than-usual week, we’ve got the lowdown from the new government’s first cabinet meeting, news that the IMF’s Executive Board is pushing back its meeting to rubber-stamp a USD 820 mn tranche, and so much more.

And in case you forgot, the private sector, public sector, banks, bourse, and even us here at EnterpriseAM Egypt will be off tomorrow for Islamic New Year. But fear not, we will be back bright and early on Sunday morning with all the local business news and updates from the long weekend to keep you up to track.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Customs Authority mulls 10k monthly car import quota: The Customs Authority is considering a proposal from the automotive division of the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce to allow a monthly import quota of 10k cars following the tighter restrictions on car imports recently, two sources at the Customs Authority told Enterprise. The division proposes to divy up the monthly imports to companies according to their market share, and to implement the quota until the end of the year in hopes that the local supply picks up and the market stabilizes by then, the sources added.

#2- A temporary pause to blackouts to calculate usage: Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly has instructed that load shedding be temporarily paused as “experiments” in order to gauge daily energy needs “under normal conditions,” he said in a press conference following yesterday’s cabinet meeting. The move comes ahead of the government’s plan to suspend power cuts for the summer months starting from the third week of July.

#3- SEIC to conclude due diligence on CIRA before September: The Saudi Egyptian Investment Company (SEIC) — a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund — should wrap up its due diligence ahead of its acquisition plans CIRA Education by the end of August, CIRA CEO Mohamed El Kalla told Asharq Business.

Remember: SEIC said in May that it will buy into Social Impact Capital, the vehicle through which the founding El Kalla family holds a controlling stake in EGX-listed CIRA Education. SIC will use the cash injection to launch a mandatory tender offer to buy CIRA shares at a price of EGP 14 each to up its stake in the company to 75-100%.

PSA-

WEATHER- Another summery day in Cairo today, with a high of 39°C and a low of 28°C, according to our favorite weather app.

It’s continuing to heat up in Alexandria and along the North Coast, with a high of 36°C and a low of 24°C.

And over the long weekend, in the capital it will heat up to 40°C tomorrow, before gradually falling to 38°C by Saturday. While for our friends on the Mediterranean, temperatures will slowly dip to 35°C by the end of the long weekend.

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

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HAPPENING TODAY-

#1- Inflation to drop for a fourth consecutive month? Capmas and the CBE are expected to publish June’s inflation data today. Policy makers and the business community are hoping for the recent downward trend in inflation levels to continue after annual urban inflation cooled to 28.1% in May — its lowest level in 16 months.

Forecasts are all over the place: While annual urban inflation is expected to cool 0.6 percentage points for the fourth consecutive month to 27.5%, according to a median prediction of 17 analysts polled by Reuters, others see inflation moving the other way. Naeem Brokerage is forecasting that headline inflation will pick up 1.9 percentage points to 30% in a note seen by Enterprise, while Barclays has penciled in an even greater 4.2 percentage point jump to 32.3%.

#2- House committee starts reviewing the new government’s policy statement: The parliamentary committee tasked with reviewing the new government’s policy statement will kick off its meetings starting today. The committee will hold two meetings a day, which will see the new cabinet ministers summoned to answer questions on the government’s plan for the next three years.

What’s next? The 42 committee members will draft a report on their findings at the end of the debates to submit it to the House for discussion on Sunday 21 July, before MPs hold a vote of confidence in the new government.

FACT CHECK-

It’s business as usual at our largest power plants: German firm Siemens Energy continues to operate Egypt’s two largest power plants, the Electricity Ministry said in a statement, in response to reports that the energy giant would be stepping back from the power plants due to outstanding debts owed by the government. The energy technology giant operates, maintains, and manages power plants in Beni Suef, Burullus, and the new capital under a eight-year agreement inked in 2018.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

#1- IMF meeting to greenlight USD 820 mn tranche pushed to 29 July: After initially being penciled in for today and then disappearing from the Executive Board’s schedule, the Fund’s Egypt head Ivanna Hollar clarified that the board will meet to discuss the staff-level agreement-approved third review of our USD 8 bn loan program on 29 July, in comments to Asharq Business. Assuming the board greenlights the fresh USD 820 tranche into the state coffers, this will in turn allow Egypt to apply for an additional USD 1.2 bn in climate finance from the international lender.

Why the delay? The regional business news outlet cited an anonymous senior government official who alleged that the delay stems from Egypt “not meeting some conditions.” However, the source clarified that these were “simple procedures by the Fund that will be clarified soon.

#2- Calling all fintech SMEs: Changelabs has partnered with Disruptech Ventures and InDrive New Ventures to open applications for fintech SMEs looking to join the Egyptian edition of its flagship MENA fintech accelerator. The Egypt Fintech for a Future Accelerator aims to support 12 local fintech SMEs Egypt, Africa and the Middle East looking to expand into Egypt, develop their products, raise funds, and build their customer base and strategic partnerships, according to a press release (pdf). The program will run from September to January and give participating startups USD 25k in Amazon Web Services funding alongside tech and design support, coaching, and partnership leads. Applications close on 1 August. Apply 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-

The Nato summit kicked off in Washington yesterday against the backdrop of Joe Biden’s teetering reelection campaign and developments in the Russia-Ukraine war landing on most front pages with news of another support package for Ukraine, this time in the form of an air defense system. (Washington Post | Reuters | FT)

Biden’s speech at the summit stood in stark contrast with his performance at the presidential debate, with Reuters noting his “strong and confident voice” as he read off a teleprompter and looked to avoid signs of weakness.

Still, his future candidacy remains in limbo, with another key democrat — Mikie Sherrill — joining the growing call among Democratic lawmakers for him to drop out, while some others have pledged support, the Financial Times said.

ALSO HAPPENING YESTERDAY- US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell kicked off his testimony before the Senate Banking Committee with a tee-up for an interest rate cut that could take place as soon as September, Reuters reports.

“Leaving monetary policy too tight for too long could unduly weaken economic activity and employment,” Powell said, adding that the US economy is no longer overheated, as inflation and the labor market both continue to cool.

OVER IN EUROPE- It’s a bad week for France on all fronts, as it faces a political stalemate and is kicked out of the Euros by a defiant Spain — led by 16-year-old wunderkind Lamine Yamal — in yesterday’s semi-final.

PLUS- Europe just launched its first rocket in almost 30 years, virtually “power[ing] Europe back into space,” European Space Agency Josef Aschbacher head said, after years of dominance from Elon Musk’s SpaceX. (FT | CNBC)

*** It’s Hardhat day — your weekly briefing of all things infrastructure in Egypt: Enterprise’s industry vertical focuses each Wednesday on infrastructure, covering everything from energy, water, transportation, and urban development, as well as social infrastructure such as health and education.

In today’s issue: We take a look at Egypt’s energy mix over the last ten years and what led us to the ongoing period of gas shortages and electricity blackouts.

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