Good afternoon, friends, and congratulations on making it to the end of what has been a packed workweek. Here’s hoping this weekend’s cooler weather ushers in a calmer week.

THE BIG STORY TODAY-

The Madbouly government plans to keep diesel prices unchanged in the upcoming fuel price hike to contain inflation, a government source told EnterpriseAM.

Holding diesel prices is a key step of the government’s strategy to contain inflation and pave the way for further interest rate cuts. The fuel price hike is expected within days, and other oil products will be priced higher to contain the diesel price subsidies, we were told.

What’s next: The automatic pricing committee will convene every three months after cost recovery — given global oil prices, consumption levels, and the exchange rate remain steady — to decide whether to keep prices unchanged, raise them by up to 10%, or cut them in line with international markets.

The last one? Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly confirmed earlier this month that the government has a clear reform plan for fuel prices and signaled that the next scheduled increase, likely in October, could be the last major hike if global prices remain stable.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

It’s a relatively calmer afternoon in the global press, with no single story leading the news. Among the stories getting plenty of ink:

White House threatens mass firings: A memo obtained by US media sees the White House preparing “mass firing” plans for programs lacking alternative funding in the event that Congress fails to meet a 30 September budget deadline. Failure to meet the deadline would lead to a government shutdown, in which all “non-essential operations” would be ceased. “We remain hopeful that Democrats in Congress will not trigger a shutdown and the steps outlined above will not be necessary,” the memo — which comes days after US President Donald Trump refused a meeting with said Democrats, claiming their healthcare funding demands were “unserious and ridiculous” — reads.

At risk of permanent firings are the programs “not consistent with the President’s priorities.” US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer was quick to denounce the memo, noting that “Trump has been firing federal workers since day one — not to govern, but to scare,” further adding that the memo is merely another attempt at intimidation. (CNN | NBC | WSJ | BBC | Axios)

MEANWHILE- Trump’s concerns seem to be elsewhere. The US president has demanded an investigation into what he called a “triple sabotage” this week at the United Nations General Assembly. The alleged sabotage includes an escalator failure, audio issues, and a malfunctioning teleprompter, which Trump claims in a lengthy post on Truth Social were a deliberate insult. UN Secretary-General Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric noted that the escalator malfunction was triggered by a safety mechanism “designed to prevent people or objects accidentally being caught and stuck in or pulled into the gearing” after a videographer from the US delegation stood at its top. (CNN | BBC | ABC | Guardian)

ALSO- China announced new climate plans at the UN General Assembly on Wednesday, with President Xi Jinping vowing to cut his country’s greenhouse gas emissions by 7-10% through a live video message from Beijing. The East Asian nation plans to increase its wind and solar capacity in a bid to cut down on fossil fuel reliance, Xi added. The Chinese president’s statement follows Trump’s speech on Tuesday, in which he called climate change “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world.” (Reuters | CNBC | BBC | Associated Press)

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- The weekend is getting a cool start, with temperatures in the capital reaching a high of just 31°C, with lows of 19°C, according to our favorite weather app.

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