Good morning, folks and happy Thursday. It’s another busy morning here in Egypt, with investment and energy news leading the news well — a consortium of local and Saudi players is mulling a USD 1 bn redevelopment project in Downtown Cairo and the long-delayed Nitzana pipeline linking Israel and Egypt is finally moving forward and is scheduled to be up and running in 2028.

ALSO- The US Federal Reserve slashed rates for the first time in nine months yesterday — we’ll keep an eye out as to how local, regional, and international markets react to the news over the coming days.

PSA-

WEATHER- It’s another sunny day in Cairo, which is in for a high of 34°C and a low of 23°C, according to our favorite weather app.

It’s more or less the same in Alexandria, which is looking at a high of 31°C and a low of 23°C.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

UPA starts settling overdue payments to pharma companies: The Unified Procurement Authority (UPA) has begun paying its overdue bills to pharma and medical suppliers, currently disbursing 50% of its debt stemming from treatments offered at no cost at Health Ministry facilities, according to a statement from the authority. The authority has committed to repaying the other 50% over three years through an irrevocable letter of credit. Meanwhile, payments tied to treatment programs run by the universal ins. system and university hospitals will be settled in full this fiscal year, with a payment schedule sent to each company starting next month. The UPA pledged that it will not fall behind on payments this fiscal year.

REMEMBER- The Finance Ministry last week said it would soon disburse EGP 7.4 bn to help settle the UPA’s overdue payments to pharma companies, earmarking another EGP 7.3 bn in credit facilities for the sector. Officials previously told us the UPA aims to clear some EGP 43 bn in overdue payments to the industry during this fiscal year.

HAPPENING TODAY-

#1- The Spanish royal family is in town, marking the king and queen’s first official visit to Egypt, the Royal Household of Spain announced in a statement. Spain’s King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, along with Foreign Affairs, European Union, and Cooperation Minister José Manuel Albares landed in Egypt on Tuesday for a four-day visit aimed at strengthening ties between the two nations. The king will open the Egypt–Spain Business Forum later today.

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and first lady Entissar El Sisi received the couple at the Ittihadiya Palace yesterday, where they held discussions focused on boosting ties, according to an Ittihadiya statement. Discussions focused on expanding economic, tourism, cultural, and education ties and touched on regional developments including the war in Gaza, with both sides reaffirming support for a two-state solution.

#2- It’s the final day of the Cairo Regional Forum on Financing Renewables,GreenHydrogen, andGreen Ammonia at Nile University. The two-day event, hosted by the International Green Hydrogen Center of Excellence in Cairo, brings together policymakers, renewables players, financial institutions, and others to discuss renewable energy investment and collaboration in the region.

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DATA POINT-

#1- The government has recorded electricity theft violations amounting to EGP 42 bn from July 2024 to date, Asharq Business reports, citing an unnamed government official. Violations by homes and commercial shops amounted to EGP 40 bn, while the remaining EGP 2 bn is attributed to factories.

REMEMBER-The Industry Ministry earlier this week announced that a blacklist for factoriesstealing electricity will soon be put together, ahead of taking “strict measures” to deter the practice of electricity theft.

#2- Egyptian companies came in third in a list of new non-Emirati companies joining the Dubai Chamber of Commerce, with 2.5k Egyptian companies joining the chamber during the first half of the year. Indian companies topped the list with a little over 9k new companies, followed by Pakistan with some 4.3k companies.

CORRECTION- In yesterday’s edition of EnterpriseAM Egypt, we said that the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development will help finance 30 new electric inter-city buses. One of our readers in the industry got in contact to tell us that the buses will not be electric, only the six microbuses for shorter routes and three other vehicles will be. We have since amended the story on our website.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

Global headlines this morning are zeroing in on the Fed’s first rate cut since December — a 25 bps move designed to shore up a labor market showing clear signs of strain. The cut fell short of the deeper reductions pushed by President Donald Trump. We have the full breakdown of the Fed’s move and what to expect next in Planet Finance, below. (Reuters | Bloomberg | Financial Times | New York Times | Wall Street Journal)

MEANWHILE IN WINDSOR- Trump’s second state visit to Britain entered full pageantry mode yesterday, as King Charles welcomed the US president with the country’s largest ceremonial reception in living memory. A carriage procession, banquet at Windsor Castle, and royal tributes to the “special relationship” framed the day — while Trump vowed to deepen trade and diplomatic ties. Today the focus shifts to geopolitics and trade talks at Chequers. (Reuters | Associated Press | BBC | The Guardian | New York Times | Bloomberg | Financial Times)

FROM THE REGION- Saudi Arabia has inked a strategic mutual defense pact with Pakistan — a move analysts see as Riyadh signalling it wants to diversify its security ties after the shock of last week’s Israeli strikes in Doha. The agreement commits the two countries to treat any attack on one as an attack on both. Saudi officials told the Financial Times the agreement is meant to “reinforce our deterrence” and reflects a broader rethink of Gulf security, as the Saudi Crown Prince hardens his stance on Israel’s war in Gaza and delays any normalization talks with Netanyahu’s government. (Reuters | Washington Post)

WORTH READING THIS MORNING- The number of b’naires worldwide has ballooned from just 140 in 1987 to more than 3k worth a combined USD 16 tn today, with the top 0.0001% of the population seeing their wealth grow more than twice as fast as average adults over the past three decades, writes the Financial Times. Economists like Gabriel Zucman say the rise of a hyper-elite underscores governments’ difficulty in taxing vast pools of private wealth — prompting renewed debate over global wealth taxes and exit taxes as the super-rich become ever more mobile.

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