Good afternoon, friends. The news cycle is still at pace. Analysts are holding their breath as political developments and global market reactions unfold. Let’s dive in.

THE BIG STORY TODAY-

? An Qatari-Egyptian Consortium is close to being chosen to work on the redevelopment of the former National Democratic Party headquarters in central Cairo, a senior government source told EnterpriseAM. The USD 5 bn redevelopment has been delayed due to FX fluctuations and revisions to the valuation of the project, we were told.

The as of yet unnamed consortium isn’t the only one in the running, with the Sovereign Fund of Egypt also examining several other offers, our source told us. The list of candidates includes the consortium of the UAE’s Al Shafar General Contracting Group and Saudi Egyptian Developers, which had previously secured the project in 2023, before dropping out in the following year on the back of an uptick in construction costs following the float of the EGP.

It’s still unknown how much — if it all — the plans for the prime spot of real estate have changed, but the original plan was to build a 220-meter, seven-star hotel, alongside residential buildings and a multistory car park.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

? It’s another busy afternoon in the global press, with the latest on the US-led plan to end the war in Ukraine dominating headlines. After US President Donald Trump’s 28-point proposal to end the war in Ukraine faced pushback for purportedly favoring Russia, leading European leaders to ink their own proposal and the US and Ukraine reportedly making progress on a new draft of the plan. “Much is changing: we are working very carefully on the steps needed to end the war,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said following talks in Geneva yesterday. (Guardian | CNN | BBC | Financial Times | Reuters)

Market reax: Earlier today, shares in major European defence stocks faltered following news of peace talk progress. German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall was down 3.5% at the time of publication, German surveillance tech company Hensoldt was down 3.9%, and Swedish aerospace and defence company Saab was down 3.4%. European aerospace and defense companies index Sxparo was also down 1.7% at the time of publication. (CNBC | Reuters | Bloomberg)

ALSO- With eight months left to its mandate, the US Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, has gone out with a whimper, but not before wreaking havoc on governmental and federal infrastructure with promises to save USD tns. When asked about its status, Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor told Reuters that it simply “doesn’t exist.” DOGE, with a name inspired by the popular doge meme, was spearheaded by tech bn’aire Elon Musk until his departure in May. (Reuters | Guardian)

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- We’re back to cooler fall days, with temperatures in the capital tomorrow to peak at a sensible 24°C before cooling down to 16°C, according to our favorite weather app.

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