Good morning, folks. It’s another busy morning here in Cairo, led by a fresh IMF growth forecast and lots of gold talk from the first day of the Egypt Mining Forum.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- IMF trims Egypt’s growth outlook: The IMF has cut our growth forecast for the current fiscal year to 4.1%, down 0.3 percentage points from its April forecast in its updated World Economic Outlook (pdf). The Fund also trimmed its growth forecast for the fiscal year 2023-2024 to 2.7%, down 0.3 percent points from the 3.0% penciled in its latest forecast.

Below gov’t projections: The new Madbouly cabinet expects to see the economy growing at a 4.2% clip during the current fiscal year.

** We dive into the IMF’s global growth outlook in the news well, below.

#2- HoldiPharma gearing up to sell a stake in Misr Pharma: State-owned pharma manufacturer HoldiPharma is reportedly looking to appoint an investment bank to promote and manage the offering of its subsidiary Misr Pharma to a strategic investor, Al Borsa reports, citing unnamed sources. Misr Pharma has a valuation of EGP 1 bn, according to the fair value study conducted by Financial Advice Corporate Transactions (FACT).

Part of the privatization program: Misr Pharma is included in the list of companies and assets earmarked for privatization.

#3- You’re officially banned from cutting or trimming trees in Cairo, under a decision issued by Cairo Governor Ibrahim Saber. Under the decision, people need to get the greenlight from a specialized committee ahead of transplanting a tree and the procedure needs to happen under the Environment Ministry's supervision.

#4- Medical supplies are being released from ports after the central bank made the required FX available for importers allowing them to take out letters of credit and release their goods from ports. This came following repeated calls from the Medical Supplies Division at the Cairo Chamber of Commerce — the supplies have been held at the ports since May, according to a press release (pdf). The division will submit a proposal to CBE governor Hassan Abdalla to ensure that this doesn’t happen again.

#5- Egypt, Jordan are in discussions over doubling the capacity of their electricity line to 1.1 GW and then doubling it again to 2 GW at a later stage, Jordanian Energy Minister Saleh Al Kharabsheh told Asharq Business.

Remember: Egypt and Jordan have been exploring a cost-effective upgrade to their electricity link through a 1.1 GW subsea cable. The cable was expected to support a planned expansion of the line’s electrical capacity to 2 GW.

IPO WATCH-

We have a date for the Canal Company for Mooring and Lights IPO: The Suez Canal Authority is looking to sell a stake in its Canal Company for Mooring and Lights (CCML) in an IPO on the EGX early 2025, SCA boss Osama Rabie told Asharq Business. Rabie first unveiled the IPO plans back in June of last year, explaining that the company will be transferred to a holding company that will obtain ownership of some of the authority’s assets earmarked for privatization.

“Red Sea tension is still severely impacting the Suez Canal and its revenues,” he said. Suez Canal revenues fell 23% y-o-y during fiscal year 2023-24 to record USD 7.2 bn, he told Al Arabiya.

SPEAKING OF- Houthis attacked two ships passing through the Red Sea, an Israeli-owned vessel and a Greek-operated crude oil tanker, US Centcom confirmed in a post on X. No injuries were reported from either attack.

DEBT WATCH-

CBE soaks up additional liquidity from the market: The Central Bank of Egypt yesterday accepted bids from 32 banks for EGP 1.1 tn in fixed-rate deposits at a rate of 27.75% during its weekly fixed-rate auction, according to data on its website.

HAPPENING TODAY-

It’s day two of the Egypt Mining Forum, which is taking place at the Nile Ritz-Carlton and brings together thousands of industry players and government officials.

What went down on day one? We have everything you need to know about day one of the event in the news well, below.

HAPPENING TOMORROW-

The central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee will meet tomorrow to review rates. Ouranalyst poll sees the CBE holding rates steady for the second meeting in a row.

PSA-

Fixed Egypt has a new app for official authentication services: Fixed Egypt for Digital Solutions and Information Security (FEDIS) has launched a new app — dubbed Tawkilaty — that will provide e-notarization services for the government’s Digital Egypt platform. The app provides services related to the Real Estate Registration and Authentication Office and allows people to issue new ration cards.

Download the app from the App Store or Google Play.

WEATHER- It’s another toasty one in Cairo, with a high of 38°C and a low of 27°C, according to our favorite weather app.

It’s a bit cooler in Alexandria, with a high of 32°C and a low of 24°C.

** DID YOU KNOW that we now cover Saudi Arabia and the UAE?

WAR WATCH-

Israeli and Egyptian officials have held talks over the potential withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gazan border with Egypt, one of the key sticking points standing in the way of a ceasefire agreement with Hamas, the New York Times reports, citing two Israeli officials and a senior Western diplomat.

The conditions: Israel indicated that it would be willing to withdraw from the border if Egypt agrees to certain measures that would prevent the smuggling of arms across the border, including installing electric sensors and underground barriers, the sources reportedly said.

BIG STORY ABROAD-

Surprising absolutely no one, Donald Trump is still plastered across front pages of the global press. The, uhm, highlights:

#1- Trump would give Jay Powell a second term, telling Bloomberg in a sweeping interview that he would allow the US Federal Reserve boss to serve out his current term, which ends in 2026. He also discussed tariffs (he loves them), Tiktok (he doesn’t want to ban it), and taxes (he wants to slash the corporate tax to 15%), among other things.

#2- A Trump presidency could spell a rise in global inflation as a result of his US-first policies like tax cuts and high tariffs, CNBC reports.

#3- The US allegedly received intelligence of an Iranian plot to assassinate Trump weeks before the shooting, which is why the Secret Service ramped up security around him, CNN reported yesterday. Pundits and lawmakers are still asking how the shooter got to within mere meters of Trump.

#4- Trump is lining up new supporters, including former critics from the Republican party and Big Tech.

THE LA IN FRANCE- The government of French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal handed in its resignation yesterday even though left-of-center parties have not yet reached a decision on who will form the next government. The move allows now-former cabinet members who have secured seats as lawmakers in the National Assembly to vote on the next house speaker tomorrow. (WSJ)

It’s similarly a mixed bag in the business press, with no dominant them running across front pages:

  • Chinese businessman Guo Wengui — a Chinese Communist party critic and Trump ally — was convicted in a US court of what prosecutors said was a USD 1 bn fraud. (Reuters)
  • Elon Musk says he’s moving the Tesla and SpaceX headquarters from California to Texas in response to a new gender identity law he opposes in the Pacific state. (Reuters)
  • Turkey is looking to impose a minimum corporate tax on large multinationals and will hike pensions as part of a corporate tax overhaul. (FT | Daily Sabah)

*** It’s Hardhat day — your weekly briefing of all things infrastructure in Egypt: Enterprise’s industry vertical focuses each Wednesday on infrastructure, covering everything from energy, water, transportation, and urban development, as well as social infrastructure such as health and education.

In today’s issue: We take a deep dive into the new cabinet’s new transport and logistics infrastructure strategy.

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