Good afternoon all of you wonderful people and happy Monday. The presses are back to their regular whirl this afternoon — read on for all the latest.

THE BIG STORY TODAY

#1- Egypt pushes ahead with military stake sales: Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly has directed officials to fast-track plans to list military-owned companies on the EGX, calling for a clear roadmap and timeline during a meeting earlier today. The PM has also tasked Investment Minister Hassan El Khatib with following up on the stake sales’ progress.

REMEMBER- Madbouly announced last month that the government would be offering stakes in four military-owned companies during 2025, with the PM later confirming that the firms on the chopping block would include filling station operator Wataneya, bottled water company Safi, food manufacturer Silo Foods, and fuel retailer Chill Out. Wataneya and Safi are expected to IPO by mid-2025, while the IPOs for Silo Foods and Chill Out would come closer to the end of the year, Madbouly said at the time.

#2- Fincart closes funding round: Local shipping services provider Fincart has closed its pre-seed funding round for an undisclosed amount, the company announced in a press release (pdf). The round was led by Plus VC and saw involvement from Plug and Play, Orbit Startups, Jedar Capital, and other regional and international investors. The new funds will be used to expand Fincart’s courier network, augment its technology platform, and provide support to the Middle East and Africa’s fast-growing e-commerce market.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

Hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians have belatedly begun to return to their homes in Gaza’s north today after Israeli forces failed to withdraw over the weekend amid claims that Hamas had failed to release a civilian hostage. The withdrawal commenced shortly after the release of an Israeli civilian and two other hostages on Sunday, with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu saying that Israel would allow the passage of Palestinians to the strip’s north beginning Monday if Hamas delivered a list detailing the status of each remaining Israeli hostage. Hamas will release three more hostages come Saturday, as per the ceasefire agreement. (Reuters | Financial Times | CNN | BBC | NYT)

AND IN BUSINESS NEWS- Shares in AI chipmaker Nvidia and other US tech firms plummetedthis morning amid concerns that AI innovation won’t require the big ticket investments that markets have up until this point been expecting. The news follows last week’s release of Chinese startup DeepSeek’s latest chatbot, whose sophisticated model sans advanced chips has prompted a broad reassessment of Chinese companies’ competitiveness with US tech giants.

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

  • MPs gave their final approval yesterday to three tax-focused draft laws aimed at expanding tax breaks for SMEs, simplifying tax procedures, and settling disputes.
  • Another record year for outdoor ad spending: Egyptian businesses spent EGP 6.3bn on out-of-home (OOH) advertising in 2024, a 53% jump from EGP 4.2 bn in 2023.
  • Donald Trump’s proposal to “just clean out” Gaza led the conversation on last night’s talk shows, with the dangerous and worrying suggestion sparking passionate and often angry responses from the nation’s talking heads.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- The capital will see another chilly morning tomorrow, with the mercury set at a high of 22°C and expected to dip to a slight chiller low of 11°C at night, according to our favorite weather app.

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