Good afternoon, nice people, and happy almost-THURSDAY to us all. Today’s news cycle is heavily dominated by economy-focused stories, both here at home and in the international press.

We’re only five days away from meeting with some of you at the Enterprise Exports and FDI Forum, taking place at the Four Seasons at the Nile Plaza on Monday, 15 May.

We’re proud to announce that our friend Karim Abou Ghali, chairman and CEO of Pasta Regina, is joining us for the forum. Are you? Karim Abou Ghali is going to be sharing his secret sauce (no pun intended) for how he grew his exports. He will be joined on stage by Mark Wyllie, CEO of Beyti, and Hossam Sallab, CEO and vice-chairman of Sallab Group and Royal Ceramica who will discuss the fundamentals for setting up an export business and an FDI strategy.

More speakers to come: Among the CEOs, top execs, bankers, and development finance folks speaking at the conference are (in no particular order): Yasmine Khamis, chair of the Orientals Group; Tarek Kamel, CEO of Nestle Egypt; Omar Elsahy, general manager of Amazon Egypt, Khaled Morsy, CEO of DB Schenker Egypt; Shady William, managing director of IDG; Mohamed Talaat Khalifa, CEO of Concrete; Abdallah Sallam, CEO of Madinet Masr; Tarek Hosny, head of investments and projects at Fertiglobe; Nadia El-Tawil, investment officer at AfricInvest; Mostafa Bedair, CEO of Giza Seeds and Herbs; Helmy Ghazi, deputy CEO of HSBC Egypt; Nada El Ahwal, CSO of Transmar; Hassan Massoud, associate director and head of private equity (Southern Mediterranean) at the EBRD; Cheick-Oumar Sylla, director for North Africa and the Horn of Africa at the IFC; Hossam Abou Moussa of partner at Apis; Yassir Zouaoui, partner at McKinsey; and Mohamed El Gebely, Team Leader at USAID Trade.

Topics and live interviews will include:

• Why exports and FDI are the way forward and what lessons have worked from around the world;
• How to attract foreign partners and figure out what they are looking for;
• What lessons can we draw from white goods, fertilizers, and garments exporters who have increased our exports;
• What are the fundamentals to creating an export and / or FDI strategy;
• How industrial clusters could expedite exports and FDI and is a possibly avenue for SME development;
• How Egypt’s industries need to be open to evolution to become more competitive.

Tap or click here to explore the full agendaand speaker bios

** Have you confirmed your attendance? Invitations have been sent out over the past few weeks. If you have yet to confirm your attendance and would still like to join us, please reply to the invitation with an RSVP.

THE BIG STORIES TODAY

#1- Inflation eased in April for the first time since June 2022, thanks to a slowdown in food price growth and a favorable base effect. Annual urban inflation in April came in at 30.6%, cooling down from 32.7% the month before, according to figures from Capmas.

#2- Another Moody’s downgrade coming? Moody’s has placed Egypt’s long term local- and foreign-currency issuer ratings “on review for downgrade,” due to “increasing liquidity and debt affordability risks,” according to a press release (pdf). This comes a few months after the ratings agency in February cut Egypt’s rating to B3.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

The international business press is leading this afternoon with two stories coming out of the US: Upcoming inflation data and the continued standoff over the country’s debt ceiling. Analysts and economists are broadly expecting US inflation to have remained “stubbornly high” in April, with the market keeping an eye on inflation figures due out later today. (CNBC | WSJ | Financial Times)

HAPPENING LATER TODAY-

Google’s I/O 2023 keynote kicks off this evening at 8pm Cairo time (1pm ET), where Google CEO Sundar Pichai is expected to deliver remarks to a limited live audience in California. The event will be available to watch here and here.

What can you expect to see at the keynote? Google is reportedly set to unveil its first foldable smartphone, the Pixel Fold, which will reportedly be marketed as “water-resistant and pocket-sized,” CNBC reported last month, citing company documents it saw. TechCrunch and the Verge also have rundowns of what to watch for.

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

• Our first proper look at the new budget: Yesterday we got our first look at the Madbouly government’s spending plans and fiscal projections for FY 2023-2024 as Finance Minister Mohamed Maait delivered his budget statement to the House.
• Abu Dhabi wealth fund ADQ is reportedly close to acquiring a 20-25% stake in Egyptian Linear Alkyl Benzene (Elab), with the transaction expected to close before the end of this month.
• MSCI will give Egyptian securities listed in its benchmarks “special treatment” in the wake of investor concerns over Egypt’s limited FX liquidity.

WANT TO START A CAREER IN INVESTOR RELATIONS ADVISORY?Enterprise Advisory (formerly known as Inktank Communications) is looking for smart, talented people to help us tell the stories of exciting companies. Enterprise Advisory is the region’s leading investor relations advisory company and works on investor and strategic communications issues that take you deep inside the c-suite. Our clients are in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and beyond. Egyptian and foreign nationals alike are welcome to apply.

NEVER WORKED IN INVESTOR RELATIONS OR ADVISORY BEFORE? We have the Enterprise Advisory Development Program. The four-month program will see full-time, paid participants take part in workshops and lectures from veteran investor relations and advisory professionals, while also applying their knowledge in a practical setting. Those who successfully complete the program will be offered full-time positions on staff for a chance to work in a flexible and supportive — but still fast-paced — work environment that eschews micromanagement and rewards good work. Enterprise Advisory offers the chance to build a network of high-ranking individuals across some of the largest and most influential companies in the region through direct exposure to clients.

During the program, you’ll learn:

• Finance for non-finance people;
• How to analyze businesses, their business models, their strategic advantages, and their strategies;
• How to take that information and then tell an audience of investors, journalists, and analysts a compelling and well-developed story;
• How to frame individual companies’ stories within the wider macroeconomic environment.

Career switchers are very welcome.

Apply directly to jobs@enterprisemea.com and mention “advisory development program” in your subject line.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- The sun isn’t going to be out in full force, but the mercury is rising, hitting a daytime high of 38°C and a nighttime low of 19°C, our favorite weather app suggests.