Good morning, and a very happy Thursday to our readers: We have a packed issue to close out the week this morning, so let’s get to it ...

It’s PMI day: May’s purchasing managers’ index figures for Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE land this morning at 6:15 CLT. The survey claims Egypt’s non-oil private sector continued to face uncertainty in April, with declines in demand, production and employment keeping activity in contraction for a fifth straight month.

Other key indicators to keep an eye out for in coming weeks:

  • Foreign reserves figures for May will be out early next week.
  • May inflation data will be released next week.
  • Interest rates: The Central Bank of Egypt will meet Thursday, 17 June to review rates.

THE BIG STORY INTERNATIONALLY THIS MORNING- The end is almost certainly nigh for Bibi: Benjamin Netanyahu’s 12-years at the helm of the Israel government could be over as a loose coalition of opponents agreed to form a coalition last night that would remove him from power. Liberal opposition leader Yair Lapid told President Reuven Rivlin that he had the numbers to finally form a government following four indecisive elections, paving the way for a parliamentary vote next week.

Who would replace him and what would this mean for Egypt? Lapid would share the prime ministership with his main partner, the far-right ultranationalist leader Naftali Bennett, who would take the position for the first two years before handing it over to Lapid. The coalition itself is a motley crew of liberals, Islamists and right-wing settlers: a mix of opposing parties that makes predicting a policy direction at this stage almost impossible.

Plus, this thing isn’t quite over yet: With the coalition having a tiny parliamentary majority, Netanyahu still has a hope of thwarting his ouster, likely appealing to Bennett’s far-right Yamina party to vote against it, which would send the country into a fifth election in two years.

This is front page news everywhere this morning: From the New York Times and the AP to the Wall Street Journal and Reuters.

***CATCH UP QUICK with the top stories from yesterday’s edition of EnterprisePM:

  • Colliers international is now more hopeful about the Red Sea’s tourism prospects for 2021: The real estate services company now expects full-year hotel occupancy rates in Sharm El Sheikh to reach 42%, up from 81% in 2020, while hotels in Hurghada are expected to see 46% occupancy, nearly double last year’s rate
  • A new basket of structural reforms are in the pipeline: Priority industries include “tech-intensive manufacturing,” agriculture, and communications and IT, as well as financial inclusion, agriculture, and vocational education.
  • Egypt is expected to (almost) match its pre-pandemic growth level in this final quarter of the state’s current fiscal year: The economy is penciled in to grow 5.2-5.5% this quarter, having grown at a 2.9% clip in 3Q2020-2021 and 2% the previous quarter.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The FIG World Challenge Cup in Artistic Gymnastics for men and women will kick off in Egypt on Thursday and run until Sunday.

The British Egyptian Business Association will hold a virtual conversation with Oil Minister Tarek El Molla on 7 June to discuss the sector’s achievements. You can register through this link.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.

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