Good morning, friends. It has been a busy 24 hours as the world tries to take in US President Joe Biden dropping out of the 2024 presidential race. Meanwhile, on the home front, the IMF Executive Board is scheduled to discuss the third review of our USD 8 bn loan program a week from now.

AND SOME GOOD NEWS, especially if you’re tired of cold calls from real estate salespeople trying to sell you units you have absolutely no interest in buying. The National Telecom Regulatory Authority is rolling out a feature that will alert people of marketing calls.

^^ All that and more in the news well, below.

THE BLACKOUTS LIVE ON- We were prepared to celebrate our first 24 hours with no blackouts yesterday, but many of us still continued to experience power cuts despite Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly promising that the government is halting rolling blackouts until mid-September. We have more on the reason behind the continuation of the blackouts in the news well, below.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Egypt, Saudi talk energy cooperation: Newly-appointed Oil Minister Karim Badawi and Electricity Minister Mahmoud Esmat discussed ways to boost cooperation with Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman in Riyadh, according to a statement. The two countries will set up committees to “work on priority areas of cooperation and identify the mechanisms for implementing them.”

#2- Subsidized fertilizers could be getting pricier: The Madbouly government is considering raising the price of subsidized fertilizers by 30% to EGP 6,250 per ton, Asharq Business reports, citing an unnamed government official.

No surprise there: Industry players Enterprise spoke to last week told us that they’re waiting for the government to give them the greenlight to almost double their prices to EGP 8.8k per ton from their current EGP 4.5k. Raising prices will allow producers to offset the increase in cost resulting from the float of the EGP and the losses resulting from a dip in exports.

#3- Shorter workweeks for the summer time: Our friends at Youssef + Partners are implementing a four-day workweek during August as a means of improving its team’s well-being and productivity, becoming the first Egyptian law firm to implement such an initiative, the firm told Enterprise. The firm also plans to implement a four-day workweek annually from June through August starting next year.

PSA-

Countdown to the long weekend: Banks, the EGX, and the public and private sectors will be off next Thursday in observance of the 23 July Revolution.

WEATHER- It’s another hot day in Cairo, with a high of 38°C and a low of 29°C, according to our favorite weather app.

It’s cooler in Alexandria, with a high of 34°C and a low of 25°C.

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

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

US President Joe Biden has ended his reelection campaign, releasing a statement on X saying that the decision is “in the best interest of [his] party and the country” and adding that he will “focus solely on fulfilling [his] duties as President for the remainder of [his] term.”

He quickly endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, saying his selection of Harris as his running mate in 2020 was “the best decision [he’s] made.” Harris soon after expressed her “intention to earn and win this nomination” in an X post.

The narrative this morning is that Democrats are closing ranks around Harris as their candidate. She has built-in advantages: Because she’s already on the ticket, she’ll inherit the Biden-Harris campaign’s USD 96 mn war chest. Several of the figures tipped as potential Biden successors have already backed her, including North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, California Governor Gavin Newsom, and Transport Secretary and 2020 presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg, Reuters reports. As of dispatch time, some 159 democrats have rallied behind Harris, according to a WaPo tracker, including Democratic party chairs from all states

But she could still face a challenge at the Democratic National Convention, scheduled for 19 August in Chicago. Some are still calling for an open primary where anyone can throw their hat in the ring.

Unchartered territory: This is the first time since 1968 that a sitting president has not run for re-election and a candidate is selected outside of primaries and caucuses.

What happened? Biden made the decision and pushed his letter out on social media before telling most on his team. He made the move after a long meeting with a very small handful of trusted advisors. Want the inside story? Reuters | Politico | New York Times | Axios have more.

Trump has already spoken out, saying he thinks Harris will be “easier to beat” than Biden.

CLOSER TO HOME- Israel said it shot down a missile launched from Yemen yesterday, in a continuation of escalated violence from the Houthis after Israel’s first public strike against the Yemeni Houthis. The Houthis have so far launched attacks on Tel Aviv and Eilat, and have vowed to resume attacks on Israel.

HAPPENING THIS WEEK-

The World Trade Organization will hold a general meeting in Geneva starting today and the Bank of Canada will meet tomorrow to review interest rates. Canada was the first G7 economy to cut interest rates in the current cycle.

Benjamin Netanyahu is in Washington tomorrow and the opening ceremonies for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games take place on Friday.

*** 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 dive into the ins and outs of the new cabinet’s education strategy.

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