Saudi plans what could be one of the world’s biggest financing agreements of the year: Saudi Arabia wants to raise USD 11 bn from a syndicated loan to finance ambitious investment plans as the country continues its pivot away from oil, Bloomberg reports, citing sources it says are in the know. The 10-year senior, unsecured loan carries an interest rate 100 bps higher than the standard USD lending rate known as the Secured Overnight Financing Rate. Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) is acting as coordinator and bookrunner.

A boost for the regional debt market: Syndicated loan issuances in the EMEA region aredown 27% year-to-date, according to Bloomberg data.

ALSO WORTH NOTING-

  • Instacart targeting USD 10 bn valuation: The grocery delivery platform raised its initial share price range to USD 28-30 for its upcoming Nasdaq IPO, aiming for a valuation of up to USD 10 bn. (CNBC)
  • US share buybacks slump: Faced with a combination of new investment demands and more expensive borrowing, US corporates are easing off repurchases of their shares. S&P 500 buybacks fell to USD 175 bn in 2Q 2023, down by around a fifth on both the previous year and the previous quarter. Analysts project that the slowdown will likely stick around for some time and could cause stock markets to dip. (Financial Times)

EGX30

19,669

+0.7% (YTD: +34.7%)

USD (CBE)

Buy 30.83

Sell 30.96

USD at CIB

Buy 30.85

Sell 30.95

Interest rates CBE

19.25% deposit

20.25% lending

Tadawul

11,104

-0.5% (YTD: +6.0%)

ADX

9,880

+0.9% (YTD: -3.2%)

DFM

4,043

+0.2% (YTD: +21.2%)

S&P 500

4,450

-1.2% (YTD: +15.9%)

FTSE 100

7,711

+0.5% (YTD: +3.5%)

Euro Stoxx 50

4,295

+0.4% (YTD: +13.2%)

Brent crude

USD 93.93

+0.3%

Natural gas (Nymex)

USD 2.64

-2.4%

Gold

USD 1,946.20

+0.7%

BTC

USD 26,443

-0.4% (YTD: +60.3%)

THE CLOSING BELL-

The EGX30 rose 0.7% at yesterday’s close on turnover of EGP 2.0 bn (3.2% below the 90-day average). Local investors were net buyers. The index is up 34.7% YTD.

In the green: Alexandria Containers and Cargo Handling (+6.8%), Beltone Holding (+5.5%), and Mopco (+4.9%).

In the red: Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (-2.1%), Heliopolis Housing (-1.4%), and Elsewedy Electric (-1.1%).

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