It was another mixed bag on the airwaves last night, with the pundits covering tomorrow’s policy meeting at the Central Bank of Egypt, rising gold prices, the National Dialogue on upcoming presidential elections, and an ancient Greek discovery on the Mediterranean coast.

#1- Interest rates: “The CBE will likely hold rates,” EFG Hermes' Mohamed Abu Basha told Kelma Akhira host Lamees El Hadidi (watch, runtime: 5:34), citing easing monthly inflation. Abu Basha also sees the Federal Reserve pausing its tightening policy in today’s meeting.

Remember: Abu Basha was among the analysts we surveyed in our customary poll of analysts, all of whom told us that the CBE will leave rates unchanged.

#2- The gold rally is set to continue: El Hadidi spoke with the Supply Ministry advisor Nagy Farag about gold prices in Egypt (watch, runtime: 4:34), who said that gold prices have slightly increased for 24-carat, 21-carat, and 18-carat gold, despite the government’s attempts to curb the recent surge in prices. Asked about future moves, Farag speculated that international gold prices will likely continue to increase, given expectations of the Fed keeping interest rates steady this month.

The state has been doing its best to tame gold prices: The government introduced new customs rule this year designed to attract Egyptians abroad to bring gold into the country. This came in response to unprecedented volatility in the domestic gold market that saw prices hit a record high as savers bought the precious metal to hedge against surging inflation and currency uncertainty.

Where we’re at: The 24 carat gold price yesterday stood at EGP 2,537, up 1% from last week. Year to date, the price of 24 carat gold is up 32.5%.

#3- The National Dialogue got airtime last night, with Al Hayah Al Youm (watch, runtime: 11:10), Masa DMC (watch, runtime: 5:05), Yahduth fi Masr (watch, runtime: 3:08), and Ala Masouleety (watch, runtime: 3:16) all covering the National Dialogue’s recommendations for political reform ahead of the upcoming presidential election.

#4- A Greek ancient submerged city discovered in Alexandria: El Hadidi dedicated airtime to news about an entire ancient Greek port city off Egypt’s coast (watch, runtime: 6:16). The city of Thonis-Heracleion dates back to ancient Greece and was submerged under water after an earthquake thousands of years ago.

Tags: