Good morning, folks. We close out what has been a pretty slow week with a packed issue, led by last month’s inflation reading, which came in lower than expected as food and beverage prices cooled, the Madbouly government working to secure lower LNG prices, and fresh renewables projects.

** A QUICK PROGRAMMING NOTE- EnterpriseAM Egypt will be taking a break from your inboxes on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday next week. But it’s all in preparation for something special to reveal to you all — and we’re confident you’ll all think it was worth the disruption.

PSA-

Big changes are coming to CIB’s travel rewards Mileseverywhere program — and some other banks have something similar up their sleeves, we’re told. As of 1 January, Mileseverywhere will be discontinued and replaced with the new CIB Explore program — but don’t worry, all the previously accumulated Frequent Flyer points you’ve been saving up will remain available for you to use.

CIB Explore points will be redeemable from 600+ airlines, not just EgyptAir. Points will also be able to go toward paying for a choice of some 200k hotels through the program’s travel booking platform.

WEATHER- It’s another cool day in Cairo, with a high of 20°C and a low of 13°C, according to our favorite weather app. The Egyptian Meteorological Authority is forecasting a 30% chance of light rainfall in the capital and some wind activity.

It’s a few degrees cooler in Alexandria, which is looking at a high of 19°C and a low of 12°C.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- The Civil Aviation Ministry is officially accepting applications from private sector players and alliances looking to manage, operate, and develop Hurghada International Airport, marking a significant milestone in the government’s airport privatization push, according to a statement from the ministry. The public-private partnership will work toward improving the operational efficiency of the transit point and the services offered to passengers while fully maintaining the state’s ownership of the asset.

Hurghada International Airport will serve as a pilot project for a wider privatization push in the sector, which will see 11 airports developed through public-private partnerships under a program designed with the International Finance Corporation.

#2- CMA CGM is rerouting its India America Express — the Indamex service — back through the Red Sea, in the latest sign that the French shipping giant is following through on plans to ramp up transit through the Suez Canal, according to an updated schedule for the route published by the shipping line. The first ship serving the Indamex on the new program is set to arrive at the Suez Canal on 8 January.

Why does this matter? The fixed schedule, weekly line service connecting India, Pakistan, and the US East Coast with a capacity of more than 9k TEUs, has avoided the Red Sea over the last two years. CMA CGM’s decision to recommit the service fully to the Red Sea route could signify a departure from the previous approach that saw the company decide Suez transits on a case-by-case basis, maritime intelligence group Xeneta Chief Analyst Peter Sand told the Financial Times.

The dip in war risk ins. covering ships braving the Red Sea is also another cause for optimism, with rates falling some 70% compared to mid-2024 prices, Marsh’s ship broker Dylan Mortimer told the salmon-colored paper.

#3- Finance Minister Ahmed Kouchouk presented the second package of tax facilities to the business community yesterday, opening the floor up for dialogue. Kouchouk said that the lump-sum and proportional tax systems will be extended to cover the 2023 and 2024 tax periods under the package.

ICYMI- Kouchouk unveiled the package last week, introducing stock market incentives, streamlined tax refund procedures, corporate tax breaks, and more.

#4- US-sanctioned Lukoil has until 13 December to secure buyers for its overseas assets, after the US added the Russian privately held company — and the state-owned Rosneft — to its sanctions list in October and then blocked the sale of the Lukoil portfolio to Swiss trader Gunvor, Reuters reports. The current bidders include ExxonMobil and Chevron, Abu Dhabi’s International Holding Company, Adnoc, Hungarian operator MOL, US private equity firm Carlyle, and Austrian investor Bernd Bergmair, the newswire added.

This could mean some big energy news for Egypt, considering Lukoil has built a notablepresence in Egypt’s oil fields, including a 24% interest in the Meleiha oil concession in the Western Desert. Lukoil also operates the West Esh El Mallaha concession near Hurghada through a 50-50 partnership with state-owned EGPC. An adjacent block, WEEM Extension, is split equally between Lukoil and Tharwa Petroleum, with Lukoil as operator.

HAPPENING TOMORROW-

#1- The IMF delegation in town to discuss our combined fifth and sixth reviews will wrap up its trip tomorrow — which could mean some big announcements are coming our way. The nearly two-week trip has seen the IMF representatives busily meet with government officials to try to iron out issues before it greenlights the fifth and sixth tranches of our USD 8 bn Extended Fund Facility program.

ICYMI- The International Monetary Fund decided in Julyto postpone the fifth review of the country’s USD 8 bn loan program and combine it with its sixth review, arguing that “more time is needed” to make progress on the state’s withdrawal from the economy and the broader reform agenda.

The two reviews are expected to see USD 2.7 bn channeled into state coffers, in addition to the first tranche from the Resilience and Sustainability Facility, which could add a further USD 274 mn in climate financing.

#2- The Engineerex Summit 2025 will kick off tomorrow at the Greek Campus in Downtown Cairo. The two-day tech-focused event will bring together prominent tech industry leaders, innovators, and companies for talks, technical sessions, mentorship sessions, and networking across topics like AI, cybersecurity, fintech, and regional innovation.

Over 300 industry leaders in tech will take to the stage or take part in events during the summit, including Giza Systems CEO Mohamed Gad, Mashreq Egypt Retail Banking Head Mohamed Talaat, Rabbit Mart co-founder Walid Shabana, and Automatest CEO Mohab Mohie.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

One story is on every front page this morning: The US Federal Reserve lowered interest rates by 25 bps to 3.50-3.75%, marking its third cut this year. The decision was the result of a rare 9-3 split vote that exposed divisions over how to steer the economy through tariffs, a labor squeeze, and limited data from the government shutdown. Chair Jerome Powell said the Fed faces “significant downside risks” in the jobs market and inflationary pressures from Trump’s trade policies, urging caution as new data comes in. (Guardian | BBC | CNBC | CNN | Reuters | Bloomberg)

** DIVE DEEPER- We have more on the Fed’s decision in this morning’s Planet Finance, below.

AND- US forces seized a sanctioned oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast, escalating Trump’s pressure campaign against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The vessel was accused of transporting illicit oil from Venezuela and Iran. (Guardian | BBC | Bloomberg | CNN | Reuters)

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