Good morning, all and happy hump day. The past 24 hours have been quite eventful on the diplomacy-front with world leaders — including US President Donald Trump — meeting in Sharm El Sheikh to finalize the Gaza ceasefire agreement.

PSA-

WEATHER- It’s another cool fall day in Cairo, with a high of 28°C and a low of 19°C, according to our favorite weather app.

It’s more or less the same in Alexandria, with a high of 27°C and a low of 20°C.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

Egypt eyes new Turkish investment in garment accessories: The Trade Ministry’s Egyptian Commercial Service is in talks with the Turkish Clothing Manufacturers’ Association to attract new investments in garment supplies and accessories, according to a statement. The discussions come as Egypt looks to localize feeder industries for the ready-made garment sector and boost industrial integration. Both sides agreed to organize a visit by a Turkish business delegation to Egypt before the end of the year to explore establishing new factories to serve local and export markets.

HAPPENING TODAY-

#1- The World Bank and IMF annual meetup is getting into its swing in Washington today, after kicking off the weeklong set of meetings yesterday. Representing Om El Donia will be Planning Minister Rania Al Mashat, who will be taking the stage on Thursday as part of the Leaders’ Speaker Series.

US President Donald Trump’s latest ratcheting up of the country’s trade war with China is expected to top the agenda. This comes after the Mar-a-Lago mogul reacted to the curbing of key critical mineral exports from China with additional tariffs of 100% on all Chinese US-bound goods starting 1 November. Leading up to the spat over the weekend, the two economic superpowers — with a combined 42.9% of global GDP — had been cooling relations and lowering tariffs, which had in turn persuaded the World Bank and IMF to revisit and raise growth forecasts after previous tariff-related downgrades.

But we here at EnterpriseAM will be focusing on discussions on the combined fifth and sixth reviews of our USD 8 bn Extended Fund Facility program, set to take place on the sidelines of the conference between an Egyptian delegation — presumably with participation from the cabinet economic team currently in Washington — and the fund. Discussions are expected to focus on the progress made on the state privatization program, a senior government official told EnterpriseAM last week.

The IMF will release its latest World Economic Outlook today. The report provides updated forecasts and analysis on global economic growth and key trends and will be unveiled during a press briefing later today. We’ll also be keeping our eyes peeled for the Regional Economic Outlook for the Middle East and Central Asia, to be released on 21 October.

#2- We’re halfway through Cairo Water Week, the country’s annual event to discuss innovative solutions for climate resilience and water sustainability, which is taking place at New Cairo’s Triumph Luxury Hotel and will wrap on Thursday. The event’s packed schedule includes workshops, exhibitions, and sessions around adaptation to climate change, water resource management, nature-based solutions, and sustainable infrastructure. The event will also host competitions for young inventors and showcase new technologies aimed at advancing the water sector in Egypt and the region.

SUKUK WATCH-

Weekly sukuk roundup: The yield to maturity on our sovereign sukuk fell to 6.27% last Friday, down from 6.78% the week before, according to the Egyptian Financial Company for Sovereign Taskeek’s weekly report (pdf). Egyptian sovereign sukuk prices rose to USD 101.67, compared to USD 101.56 a week earlier.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

One story is dominating the front pages of the foreign press, and that’s US President Donald Trump’s victory lap in Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt yesterday, following the release of the remaining Israeli hostages by Hamas, Israel’s release of Palestinian prisoners, and what he declared the end of the war. Trump and 20 other world leaders gathered for a peace summit in Egypt yesterday to celebrate what is being heralded as a “new dawn” for the Middle East. We have more on the summit in the news well, below. (Reuters | Bloomberg | Financial Times | Wall Street Journal)

Next up: Ukraine? Trump is set to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House on Friday as he sets his eyes on resolving the conflict with Russia. (WSJ | Axios)

Among the biggest business headlines, OpenAI’s latest chip agreement with Broadcom is getting the most attention. The two firms agreed to develop and deploy 10 GW of chips and computing systems, marking the latest in a series of chip agreements inked by OpenAI with the likes of Nvidia and AMD worth bns of USD. (WSJ | FT | CNBC)

PLUS- American-Israeli Joel Mokyr, French economist Philippe Aghion and Canadian economist Peter Howitt were awarded the Nobel Prize for Economic Sciences for their work exploring the impact of innovation on economic growth, and the concept of “creative destruction.” (WSJ | CNN)

*** It’s Going Green day — your weekly briefing of all things green in Egypt: EnterpriseAM’s green economy vertical focuses each Tuesday on the business of renewable energy and sustainable practices in Egypt, everything from solar and wind energy through to water, waste management, sustainable building practices and how you can make your business greener, whatever the sector.

In today’s issue: We look at our green hydrogen ambitions as demand for the fuel source dampens.

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