The headlines from this morning

Missed this morning’s edition of EnterpriseAM? Here are the top stories in a nutshell.

• Five EGX-listed companies took some 20.1 mn of their own shares off the market last week, buying through the rebound that followed a selloff severe enough to trigger the bourse’s first market-wide trading halt since October 2021. The EGX30 closed in October down 4.4%, with the EGX70 shedding some 9.9% over the same period. Three firms approved their programs during that selloff;
• Goldman Sachs thinks the EGP is trading more than 30% below fair value after October’s currency slide, making it one of the most undervalued emerging market currencies. The bank now sees the USD at EGP 53 in three months, 52 in six, and 50 in 12;
• Exporters will get an average of 35% more in government support under a revamped export rebate program the Cabinet approved on Thursday, 5 November. The new rates already apply to shipments from the start of this month. The increase varies by sector and excludes freezone exporters. Freight gets its own support line, with the program covering 50% of sea and land freight costs to Africa, Latin America, Australia, Southeast Asia, and Russia;
• The Cabinet approved a draft decree on Thursday ordering three months of public spending rationalization across all state budget entities and public economic authorities, extendable if needed. Events in the Middle East require the state to reorder its spending priorities to contain the crisis’s fallout. Any spending with a foreign currency component now needs the Finance Ministry’s approval, coordinated with the Central Bank of Egypt.