Good morning, all. We’re wrapping up what has been a pretty eventful week with a brisk issue led by the latest inflation data — annual urban inflation cooled again in August to 12%, its lowest ready since March 2022, and some are optimistic it will dip even further as we approach year end.

We also have some good news on the auto localization front: Chinese giant Sailun broke ground on its USD 1 bn tire plant in Sokhna in the latest sign that our automotive localization efforts are gaining steam.

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PSA-

WEATHER- It looks like the scorching heat is behind us with Cairo in for another cooler-than-usual Thursday. The capital will be looking at a high of 33°C and a low of 23°C today, according to our favorite weather app.

It’s more or less the same in Alexandria, which is in for a high of 31°C and a low of 22°C.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- MADBOULY CONFIRMS IT- No electricity price hikes this month. Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly said that the government will not hike electricity prices this month during his weekly presser (watch, runtime: 45:37). “We look at electricity prices as part of the wider economy and their impact on inflation,” he said.

You heard it here first: EnterpriseAM reported earlier this week that the government will push back expected electricity price hikes until the end of the year. The payoff of lowering inflation — and in turn allowing the central bank to continue cutting interest rates — outweighs the revenue from price hikes, a senior government source told us.

#2- Incoming LNG shipments are set to fall by a third in the last quarter of the year, with the country expected to receive around 40 shipments in the post-peak summer period, a government source told EnterpriseAM.

But we may not need to follow through on all these shipments, as the contracted shipments have flexible terms in the event of fluctuating local production and demand, our source told us. Winter could also see Eni and Shell portioning out a share of production for export as LNG.

Whether it’s 40 or 60 shipments a month, Egypt is ready, with three operational regasification vessels ready to process the shipments and a fourth that will join them this month to bring total daily capacity to 2.7 bn cubic feet of gas, we were told.

HAPPENING TODAY-

#1- It’s the fourth and final day of EFG Hermes’ Annual London Investor Conference, which is being held at Emirates Stadium under the theme Investing Right in MENA. The gathering brings together 710 participants from around the world, including 285 investors from 146 global institutions, alongside 131 companies. This year’s edition spotlights Saudi Arabia, with 82 Tadawul-listed firms in attendance. We’ll have the rundown of the highlights in the news well, below.

#2- Orascom Construction will start trading on the ADX today under the ticker ORAS, moving its primary listing from Nasdaq Dubai to the Abu Dhabi bourse, it said in a statement (pdf). At the opening bell, the contractor’s shares will be dually traded on the ADX and the EGX. Orascom’s ADX debut price was pegged to yesterday’s EGX close of EGP 394.5 per share, or AED 30.15.

REMEMBER- Orascom is the first Egyptian contractor to pursue a dual-listing in Abu Dhabi and Cairo, a move that underscores the ADX’s growing pull as a regional liquidity center. For the contractor, the shift away from Nasdaq Dubai opens access to deeper institutional flows, while for other Egyptian corporates it could set a precedent on where to anchor secondary listings.

#3- Today is the last day for investors to apply for the latest industrial land offering through the digital platform Made in Egypt, according to an Industry Ministry statement. The offering includes around 1.4k serviced plots across 23 governorates, covering 6.8 mn sqm, with unit sizes ranging from 240 sqm to 500k sqm.

FROM THE BOURSE-

Ferchem Misr for Fertilizers & Chemicals saw its shares jump 20% on its first day of trading on the EGX main market, after completing its transfer from the small-cap Nilex. The stock closed at EGP 54.73, up from a previous close of EGP 45.61, with trading capped at the maximum daily allowable limit. The session saw 6k shares change hands in three trades, generating a total turnover of EGP 330k. At its closing price, Ferchem’s market capitalization stood at EGP 21.9 bn.

DATA POINT-

The total value of mobile wallet transactions grew 72% y-o-y to EGP 943 bn in 2Q 2025, as the number of wallets rose 29% y-o-y to 46.3 mn and transactions jumped 80% y-o-y to 718 mn, according to a statement (pdf) from the National Telecom Regulatory Authority. VodafoneCash led in the number of e-wallets, transactions, and value, followed by e&Cash, OrangeCash, and WePay.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Foreigners get more time to sort out residency permits: The cabinet yesterday extended the period for foreign residents who do not have residency permits to legalize their stay in the country, granting them another year to sort their documentation out.

REMEMBER- This is the fourth time the cabinet pushed back the deadline to settle the USD 1k fine and arrange an Egyptian host — it was initially set for December 2023, before being pushed time and time again.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

There’s only one story leading the conversation in the international press this morning: Prominent pro-Trump conservative influencer and co-founder of Turning Point USA Charlie Kirk was assassinated last night — shot dead while speaking at a Utah university. The 31-year-old, credited with mobilizing youth and minority voters for President Donald Trump’s second-term victory, was struck in the neck moments after taking a question on gun violence.

The killing — the latest in a string of violent attacks on US political figures — sent shockwaves through Washington. (Reuters | BBC | Associated Press | Financial Times | New York Times | The Guardian | Axios | Bloomberg)

ON THE MARKETS FRONT- Oracle’s blowout quarter briefly made chairman Larry Ellison the world’s richest person yesterday, overtaking Elon Musk after the software giant’s shares jumped 36%. Ellison’s net worth hit a peak of USD 386 bn before easing back by market close, while Oracle’s market value surged to USD 922 bn on the back of huge cloud contracts tied to OpenAI and other AI leaders. (Financial Times | Bloomberg | The Guardian | BBC | Axios | Washington Post | Reuters)

CLOSER TO HOME- Israel launched airstrikes on Yemen — killing 35 and injuring over 100 — after the Houthis launched a drone attack that hit an Israeli airport. The attack comes one day after Israel launched an attack on Qatar. (AP | New York Times | Reuters | Bloomberg)

ALSO WORTH NOTING THIS MORNING-

#1- Poland has become the first NATO member to fire on suspected Russian drones during the war in Ukraine, after 19 objects crossed into its airspace overnight during a Russian air attack on Ukraine. Prime Minister Donald Tusk called the incident a “large-scale provocation” and activated Article 4 of the NATO treaty, requesting emergency consultation with allies. (Reuters | Associated Press | The Guardian | BBC | New York Times)

#2- Life on Mars? NASA scientists say new rock samples collected from an ancient riverbed on Mars could hold the strongest evidence so far of ancient microbial life — though they stress much more analysis is needed. (Associated Press | CNN)

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