UN warns of a once-in-a-millennium El Niño

Good afternoon, folks, and congratulations on making it to the weekend — you’ve earned the rest. It’s an unusually quiet day on the newsfront, and you’ll hear no complaints from us. Today, we’re asking a question that’s been nagging at most of us this summer: is 2026 actually an unprecedented run of natural disasters, or does it just feel that way? Well, the answer is a little more complicated than either direction.

Elsewhere in today’s issue: We binge-watched Disney+’s latest thriller and think you should too. We’ve also got a round-up of the weekend’s top sports fixtures. That and more.

Without further ado, the news…

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

🌐 It’s been a rather busy week in the press, but it seems today is quite the exception, with very few stories getting major ink. In the absence of any substantial updates on the US-Iran front, here are some of the stories leading the digital front pages:

Kuwait’s army said today that its air defenses confronted hostile missile and drone attacks from Iran as the Islamic Republic targets US allies across the region. Iran’s army confirmed attacks on US bases in the UAE and Kuwait, just a day after US President Donald Trump said that renewed hostilities would not last too long. This follows US strikes against Iran on Tuesday, described by Trump as “a very heavy attack,” to which Iran retaliated by targeting US allies in Jordan and Bahrain.

^^Read more on: Associated Press, CNBC, and France 24.

MEANWHILE- The El Niño climate phenomenon is making headlines again as UN Secretary-General António Guterres warns it is “supersizing before our eyes.” The latest forecasts from the World Meteorological Organization suggest the event could become the strongest El Niño ever recorded in at least 1k years and persist through February 2027, potentially making next year the hottest on record. We get into all that, the resulting disasters unfolding around the globe, and more in today’s issue down below.

^^Read more on: BBC and The Guardian.

Why Rep. Neveen El Tahri is optimistic: Foreign investors see a lot of potential in Egypt. Their optimism, however, is not necessarily shared by many inside Egypt. So where does the gap lie?

On this episode of Making It, Rep. Neveen El Tahri joins Patrick to make the case for optimism.

She dives into policy, privatization, the many opportunities ahead of Egypt, and her personal belief that changes on the policy level will eventually trickle down.

Listen to the episode on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Anghami | YouTube

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** CATCH UP QUICK on the top stories from today’s EnterpriseAM:

• Raya Holding’s board walked away from Helios’ bid for its frozen food unit, marking the UK-based, Africa-focused PE firm’s second collapsed local transaction in under two months. Raya’s BoD resolved yesterday not to proceed with Helios Investment Partners’ amended offer for 100% of Raya Foods, citing unmet conditions required to complete the transaction;
• Chinese President Xi Jinping’s first state visit to Egypt in a decade has so far delivered a set of working tracks. President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and Xi oversaw the signing of five agreements and MoUs, plus more than 20 cooperation documents. The agreements run from an MoU aligning Vision 2030 with China’s Belt and Road, through economic and technical cooperation, industrial and supply chain, and information technology MoUs, to another between the Suez Canal Economic Zone authority and China’s Commerce Ministry;
• The trading blackout that once ran for five business days before and one business day after any material disclosure by a listed company is now limited to the earnings calendar, under amendments made by the FRA to the listing and delisting rules which took effect yesterday. M&As, capital increases, major contract awards, and regulatory actions no longer open a window on their own;
• Valu’s board of directors extended CEO and founder Walid Hassouna’s term for another three years. The board extended the contracts of Executive Committee members for the same period.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Summer may be well on its way out, but the heat certainly isn’t going anywhere just yet. If you’re staying in the capital this weekend, expect a sunny high of 36°C before temperatures drop to an overnight low of 24°C, according to our favorite weather app.