Egypt eyes a clean IMF exit as the House weighs defending Saudi

Here are the stories driving the day both at home and abroad. The government is preparing to wrap up the eighth and final review of our USD 8 bn IMF program on the back of progress on its IPO program and tax collection, three government sources told EnterpriseAM. An IMF mission is expected in Egypt in the second half of November, with both sides aiming to close the review before the program ends in mid-December, the sources added.

What’s at stake? Closing the review unlocks the program’s final disbursement of roughly USD 2.3 bn: some USD 1.5 bn under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and around USD 800 mn under the climate-focused Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF). It would also give Egypt a clean exit from the program, a vote of confidence from the Fund that the government is counting on to court foreign investors. But it isn’t done yet. Several hurdles still need clearing before the mission lands. We break them down in tomorrow’s EnterpriseAM.

IN OTHER NEWS- The House is debating whether to authorize the Armed Forces to defend Saudi Arabia if Riyadh asks. MPs are meeting in an emergency plenary session chaired by House Speaker Hisham Badawi. The session follows a National Defense Council meeting, chaired by President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, that pledged full support for Saudi’s security and concluded that Egypt will keep pushing diplomatically to de-escalate following a month of Houthi attacks on Saudi airports. No statement had come out of the House session as at the time of publication.

We’ll have more on both stories in tomorrow’s issue of EnterpriseAM.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Chilly weather is slowly but surely setting in across Cairo, with tomorrow’s temperatures reaching a hazy high of 28°C before dipping to a clear overnight low of 18°C, according to our favorite weather app.

MAKING HEADLINES ABROAD-

Protests in France continue to make global headlines after police arrested around 1.8k people after riots swept major cities on Saturday, with protesters setting fire to Limoges’ historic town hall and breaking into and defacing Marseille’s city hall. The unrest followed demonstrations involving around 550k people protesting rising fuel prices, the cost of living, and deteriorating public services.

Violence spread across Paris, Marseille, Lille, and Lyon, with rioters torching cars and buildings, looting shops, and clashing with riot police. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said 150 police officers were injured in the unrest, but despite the scale of the damage, authorities said most of Saturday’s demonstrations had been peaceful before violence broke out in several cities.

^^ Read more on: CNN, BBC, Reuters, Associated Press, and The Guardian.

IN OTHER NEWS- A smiling Pope Leo XIV was discharged from Rome’s Gemelli Hospital on Saturday, four days after undergoing surgery for lung cancer. Leo is scheduled to lead prayers with pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square today, marking his first public engagement since the operation to remove the lower lobe of his right lung. His surgeon, Stefano Margaritora, said the pope could fully recover within 10 days and that there was “no clinical reason” to cancel his planned trip to South America next month.

^^ Read more on: BBC, CNN, and Reuters.