Good morning, all. We’re preparing to bid farewell to sahel season and weekends by the beach as we bid farewell to August and prepare to walk into September, back-to-school season, and shorter days.

But it isn’t over just yet — we’re in for one last long weekend this summer with next Thursday off in observance of Prophet Muhammad’s birthday. So far we have word that the public sector and banks will be getting the day off but we’re still on the lookout for statements from the Labor Ministry and the EGX.

We kick off the week with a macro-heavy issue, led by last fiscal year’s financial indicators. GDP growth outpaced expectations, coming at 4.5%, significantly higher than the figure recorded a year earlier. We also dive into the central bank’s Thursday rate cut — the rationale behind it and why analysts are penciling in more cuts this year.

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

In the fourth issue of our Destination Sahel series, we’re bringing you the latest updates on New Alamein City and a look at the best investments in Sahel today. We also investigate the growing issue of beach erosion and its impact on our shores.

Look for Destination Sahel, Issue IV, in your inbox on Wednesday, 3 September.

Missed the first three issues? Tap here to read the full series.

PSA-

WEATHER- It’s another hot day in Cairo, with a high of 37°C and a low of 25°C, according to our favorite weather app.

It’s a little nicer in Alexandria, which will experience a high of 33°C and a low of 24°C.

HAPPENING TODAY-

Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly is in China to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Plus summit, according to a cabinet statement out yesterday. The two-day gathering in Tianjin — which kicks off today — will bring together leaders and senior officials from member and partner states to discuss political, economic, and security cooperation.

Madbouly’s first day in China was plenty eventful: Madbouly met up with Chinese President Xi Jinping — the two touched on boosting Chinese investments in Egypt. He also met with Cai Qi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, who voiced his support for Chinese companies setting up shop in the Egyptian market. During the meeting, Madbouly invited Chinese EV players to set up factories in the Suez Canal Economic Zone and called for more cooperation in the field of water desalination and solar and wind power components.

Madbouly also met with representatives from Chinese companies — including petrochemicals player CNCEC and power transformers manufacturer TBEA. During his meeting with TBEA, he pointed to the government’s readiness to purchase over 2 GW of energy from the company, highlighting the TEDA industrial zone as a potential location for a plant. Representatives from the company mentioned solar energy and energy storage batteries as potential areas of cooperation between the two sides.

HAPPENING TOMORROW-

#1- Egypt will host its first-ever G20 meeting tomorrow, becoming the first non-G20 state to do so, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement yesterday. The three-day summit will focus on global and regional food security challenges and feed into a ministerial declaration set to be adopted in an upcoming G20 Ministerial Meeting in South Africa planned for 19 September.

#2- The revamped Labor Law comes into effect tomorrow. This follows years of debate and discussion between the government, parliament, business groups, and labor unions, which saw previous iterations of the bill pulled from the House over competing claims that it was lopsided in favor of either business owners or workers.

What does the new law entail? We dove into the ins and outs of the new law in our coverage here.

#3- The pharma manufacturing expo Pharmaconex kicks off tomorrow at the Egypt International Exhibition Center, according to a statement (pdf) from the organizers. The three-day event will highlight recent public and private sectors’ efforts to localize drug manufacturing and strengthen supply chains under the National Health Strategy 2024-2030. The exhibition will host over 350 exhibitors from 40 countries and feature some 70 conference sessions.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Orascom Construction will list its shares on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) on 11 September, moving its primary listing from Nasdaq Dubai, according to a statement (pdf). Once listed on the ADX, under the symbol ORAS, the company’s shares will be dually listed on the ADX and EGX. The opening price on ADX will be set at the closing price on the EGX on 10 September, and converted into AED using the exchange rate published by the Central Bank of the UAE.

REMEMBER- The listing shift comes as the ADX continues to assert itself as one of the region’s capital markets heavyweights, offering deeper liquidity and stronger institutional flows via entities like sovereign wealth funds ADQ and Mubadala.

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-

Fed governor Christopher Waller said he wants rate cuts to begin as of next month’s meeting, which he expects will deliver a 25 bps rate cut, though he did not completely dismiss the possibility of a bigger cut if employment data — out next Friday — shows a substantially weakening economy alongside contained inflation. (Reuters | Financial Times)

SPEAKING OF- The US’ economy grew 3.3% in 2Q 2025, faster than expected on the back of healthy consumer spending and a drop in imported goods. (WSJ)

ALSO- The US ended the de minimis tariff exemption on small packages valued at USD 800 or less, potentially shaking up the e-commerce sector, with several already suspending deliveries of small packages or raising prices. (Bloomberg).

BUT- Tariffs hit a snag: A US court of appeals ruled on Friday that President Trump’s aggressive trade agenda is overstepping his presidential authority. The ruling blocks sweeping tariffs on all imports from countries, but does not affect tariffs on specific industries like steel, aluminum, and autos.

CLOSER TO HOME- Israeli airstrikes on Yemen killed Houthi’s Prime Minister Ahmed Al Rahawi and several political leaders on Thursday, the rebel group confirmed yesterday, vowing to take revenge. The news comes as Hamas also confirmed yesterday the death of military chief Mohammad Sinwar.

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