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Sunday, 11 Jun 2023

What We’re Tracking Tonight
For Your Commute
Enterprise Recommends
Go With The Flow
Inside Industry
The Enterprise Entertainment Calendar

A new theory on King Tut’s death

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Today at a glance

1

The Big Story Today

 Two state-owned pharma firms are up for grabs.
2

INSIDE INDUSTRY

 Meet our Manufacturer of the Month: Pyramid Glass.
3

FOR YOUR COMMUTE

 A new theory posits that King Tut died in a drunk-driving accident.
4

ON THE TUBE TONIGHT

 Never Have I Ever is a lighthearted portrayal of a chaotic high school experience.
5

Sports

 Serbia’s Novak Djokovic + Norway’s Casper Ruud will be on the clay court today for the men’s Roland Garros title.
6

OUT AND ABOUT

Catch Comedy Sett at CJC 610 + Listen to Omar Khairat this week.
7

Under the Lamplight

 Is it love? Or is it just Exciting Times? Author Naoise Dolan’s debut novel.

Sunday, 11 Jun 2023

What We’re Tracking Tonight
For Your Commute
Enterprise Recommends
Go With The Flow
Inside Industry
The Enterprise Entertainment Calendar
1

WHAT WE’RE TRACKING TONIGHT

THIS EVENING: Investors eyeing share purchases in two state-owned pharma players

Good afternoon, friends, and welcome to a new week. The news cycle is picking up pace, showing no signs that the usual summer slowdown is anywhere in sight.

THE BIG STORY TODAY

Two state-owned pharma firms are up for grabs: The Public Enterprise Ministry has reportedly entered negotiations with unnamed investors to snap shares in two pharma firms including Chemical Industries Development Company (CID) through a capital increase, Asharq Business quotes Minister Mahmoud Essmat as saying. Essmat denied plans to take the companies public through an IPO, saying that “it’s not necessary to offer shares of the company (CID) on the EGX.” Information about the size, timeline, and advisors of the potential transaction wasn’t made public.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

The unsealing of former US President Donald Trump’s 37 indictments continues to dominate headlines in the international press. Trump is charged with a myriad of accusations, including the concealment of classified information that breaches the Espionage Act, falsifying information, and attempting to obstruct justice. The press has also been contending the impact of this upcoming indictment on his presidential run. Trump is expected to appear before a Miami federal court on Tuesday, 13 June. The story is developing on: CNBC| Financial Times | Associated Press | The Washington Post | Bloomberg

ALSO- Fed is expected to pause its series of interest rate hikes: The US Federal Reserve is expected to keep benchmark lending rates unchanged within the 5-5.25% range at its committee meeting this Tuesday and Wednesday, despite persistent inflation, Bloombergreports. Fed Chair Jerome Powell supports a pause in rate hikes to evaluate the impact of the previous 500 basis point hikes and the recent banking issues on the economy, the business information service said.

The Enterprise Finance Forum is our flagship gathering — the one so many of you have been waiting for. The two-day event takes place this September. Stay tuned for more information on the location.

This flagship forum is the latest in our must-attend series of invitation-only, C-suite-level gatherings that allow senior members of our community to openly and frankly discuss critical issues in key sectors of the economy.

Day one is our Banking Forum, where we’ll dive deep into topics of interest to commercial and investment bankers, from an outlook on the 12 months to come in M&A, IPO, and debt capital markets to the national, regional, and global trends that are (re)shaping our industry.

Day two is all about Fintech and Non-Banking Financial Services. We’ll take a deep dive into everything from the magic of client acquisition to the prospects of consolidation and the coming of challenger banks.

WHY ATTEND? Our guests consistently tell us they attend for two reasons: (1) meaningful discussion of the issues that shape the future of their businesses and (2) an unparalleled chance to network with other senior members of the community.

** NEW: MORE NETWORKING TIME- Our agenda includes expanded networking time, including an expanded coffee break and a post-event networking room for you to interact with your peers and speak one-on-one with the team at Enterprise.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND? Everyone who plays a role in our industry, from commercial and investment bankers to asset managers, fintech founders, NBFS leaders, and professional services providers of all stripes. Attendees at our events are C-suite officers, business owners, and their direct reports; we also make an allocation for folks we think could be tomorrow’s founders and c-suite executives.

TAP OR CLICK HERE if you want to express interest in attending. We’ll be sending out the first batch of invitations just after the 30 June holiday.

Do you want to become a commercial partner? Email mtaalab@enterpriseadvisory.com.

STAY TUNED for more detail about our exciting agenda in the weeks to come.

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

enterprise

*** It’s Inside Industry day —your weekly briefing of all things industrial in Egypt. Inside Industry focuses each Sunday on what it takes to turn Egypt into a manufacturing and export powerhouse, ranging from initial investment and planning to product distribution, through to land allocation to industrial processes, supply chain management, labor, automation and technology, inputs and exports, regulation and policy.

In today’s issue:We’re kicking off a new monthly segment, Manufacturer of the Month, wherein we will profile an industrial player with a manufacturing base here in Egypt. Manufacturer of the Month will be dedicated to looking at locally bred or international players to examine the success and challenges that came with being a manufacturer in Egypt, as well as their paths forward. In our first Manufacturer of the Month, we profile glassware manufacturer Pyramid Glass.

ENTERPRISE IS LOOKING FOR SMART, TALENTED PEOPLE of all backgrounds to help us build some very cool new things. Enterprise — the essential morning read on all the important news shaping business and the economy in Egypt and the region — is looking for writers, reporters and editors to help us build out new publications. Today, we run four daily Egypt and MENA-focused publications, five weekly industry verticals, and a weekend lifestyle edition designed to make our readers feel just a bit smarter.

We have tons more in the pipeline — come help us build new publications. We offer the chance to work in a fast-paced newsroom on a broad range of topics and in a variety of formats. Our goal is simple: To create value for our growing community of >250k daily readers by telling stories that matter.

Journalists looking to explore business, finance and economic stories are welcome. So are recent journalism school graduates.

That said, we're looking for gifted story-tellers from all walks of life and across all professions, as long as they show a keen interest in learning to write about the stories, topics, businesses, and figures moving markets. Egyptian and foreign nationals alike are welcome to apply. So are job-switchers: If you’re an equities analyst tired of the rat race, we’re a great place to come work.

NEVER WORKED IN A NEWSROOM BEFORE? We have the Enterprise Business Writing Development Program. Whether you are a recent graduate, an industry vet, or looking to switch careers, the Enterprise Business Writing Development Program will give you the tools you need to tell the most important stories to our audience of C-suite officials, government ministers, diplomats, financiers, investors and entrepreneurs.

During the program you will learn:

  • The key news stories and trends shaping business and the economy in Egypt and the region, across various sectors;
  • Business and finance for non-finance people: Whether it's industry jargon or key concepts or simply how to read a balance sheet;
  • How to construct an Enterprise story: From idea formulation down to the structure, style and tone of writing;
  • How to develop sources that will give you the key insights needed to tell a complete story;
  • How to communicate these stories with the confidence and language of an insider.

Not an internship program — a career: The three-month program will see full-time, paid participants take part in workshops and lectures from veteran business journalists, while also working on and filing stories that will run on any of our publications. Those who have successfully completed the program, will then be given long-term job offers.

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

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Expect clear, sunny skies tomorrow with a high of 36°C and a low of 27°C, as per our favorite weather app.

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2

FOR YOUR COMMUTE

Study suggests that you can get a dopamine high + Did King Tut meet his demise while drunk driving?

Dopamine peaks in the brain when predicting pleasure, but is sustained by motivation, claims a new study (pdf) published last month in the Journal of Neuroscience. The findings of the experiment are a step further in solving a debate that has long split scientists. One group saw that dopamine release is triggered by “reward prediction,” meanwhile, another argued that dopamine levels were more consistent and remained high for a longer period of time in subjects that were required to “earn” their reward.

Pavlovian v operant conditioning models: In the experiment conducted for the study, two groups of rats were exposed to a light for a few seconds, which triggered the same levels of dopamine in all of their brains — much like Pavlov’s salivating dog. In the second part of the experiment, only half the rats were given a food pellet as soon as the light was turned off. The other group of rodents were required to press a lever before receiving the pellet — as is consistent with operant conditioning or instrumental action (where subjects must perform an action before receiving a reward). The latter group’s dopamine levels plateaued for significantly longer than those of the first group of rats.

What does it all mean? Dopamine levels measured in the area in our brains that is responsible for interpreting dopamine release lasted longer in subjects that were required — or motivated — to perform a given task in order to be rewarded. This new information, therefore, shows that dopamine affects learning since it is sustained when subjects behave a certain way to achieve a positive outcome — and not only when they experience pleasure without having deserved it.

A new theory posits that King Tut died in a drunk-driving accident: A chariot crash might have claimed the life of the young King Tut, according to recent research reported in the BBC’s Science Focus. The presence of large residues of white wine and six chariots in his burial chamber suggests that he was a fan of the grape and had a panache for chariot racing — interests that are not unusual for a teenager, explains Biomedical Egyptologist Sofia Aziz. The scientists put the pieces together and curated the scenario that he had crashed and injured his leg from impact with the chariot’s dashboard. Add his weak immunity due to a malaria infection to the mix, and the open wound that claimed his life corresponds to this theory.

Tutankamun’s clubfoot is the point of contention. The deformation of his foot was so severe that he could hardly take part in activities with this level of exertion, asserts Stephen Zink of the Institute for Mummy Studies at the Eurac Research Centre. However, a study of the CT scans of the king’s foot suggest that his club foot was not as severe, because there was no evidence of ankle arthritis — the common side-effect of club foot sufferers — argues Sahar Saleem, a professor of radiology at Cairo University.

Ancient DNA sequencing may hold the key to the definitive answer, but this field of research has seen little progress. Also, the nature and quality of the autopsy performed on King Tutankhamun’s body back in 1925 has destroyed vital evidence that could have explained the reason behind his death.

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3

ENTERPRISE RECOMMENDS

Never Have I Ever: Binge-worthy comedy series about growing up in America

? ON THE TUBE TONIGHT-
(all times CLT)

Never Have I Ever is a lighthearted portrayal of a chaotic high school experience: Netflix original Never Have I Ever, following Indian-American Devi Vishwakumar, is back for its fourth and final season. The new episodes will follow our protagonist, her friends, and love interests throughout senior year, wrapping up one very eventful high school experience. Vishwakumar’s story arc raises questions and critiques of race and Hindu representation, helping break the stereotype of Indian characters usually portrayed in Hollywood. The story starts with her navigating the loss of her father at the young age of 15 and throughout the seasons we get to witness how she embraces her grief and develops all her relationships, that with her friends, mother, cousin, and boyfriends. The entire series — which makes for perfect binge material, considering how light it is — is available to stream on Netflix.

⚽ Al Ahly are in Casablanca to play against Morocco’s Al Wydad at 10pm for the second leg of the title match. The 2-1 victory in Cairo last Sunday still left the Red Devils uncertain; however, they just need to aim for a tie to secure the title. Al Wydad, on the other hand, must bag the match to keep the title for the second consecutive year, and to add to their record of four CAF championship titles.

Manchester City emerged victorious for their title. The English club scored a clean 1-0 score against Inter Milan yesterday.

? Women’s world no.1 Iga Swaitiek secured her third Roland Garros title after defeating Czech Karolina Muchova (world no.43) in the final match yesterday. Swaitiek lifted the championship cup after taking the match to a third set, with a final score of 6-2, 5-7, 6-4.

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic and Norway’s Casper Ruud will be on the clay court today for the men’s title. The match begins at 4pm.

? OUT AND ABOUT-
(all times CLT)

The annual Flower Exhibition — which is typically held at the Orman Gardens — is now open to the public at the Agricultural Museum in Dokki. The exhibition will run for one month until 27 June.

The “Traces of Egypt” Exhibition wraps this Thursday, 15 June. The exhibition, which began in late March at the Grand Egyptian Museum, is organized by Egyptian-German artist Susan Hefuna and celebrates the country’s Khayamiya tradition through 28 dresses celebrating local artisans and their craftsmanship.

Legendary composer Omar Khairat is returning to the Cairo Opera House next Monday and Tuesday, 12 and 13 June. The two concerts kick off at 8:30pm, with tickets available here.

“Mesh Feminist” is Comedy Sett’s latest edition with their line-up of hilarious women comedians, coming up this Tuesday, 13 June, at CJC 610 from 9pm. Click hereto send them a message on Facebook to reserve your table.

Zawya kicks off a two-week festival for Italian director Michelangelo Antonio, as part of its Italian Cinema Focus program in cooperation with the Italian Cultural Institute. The cinema will screen Antonio’s films from next Wednesday, 14 June through to Tuesday, 27 June.

Check out Fetch-the-Sketch this Thursday, 15 June at 5-9pm in Darb 15in Maadi. This one-day, three-hour workshop on sketching and illustration aims to discover your creativity and explore your drawing abilities. For more information on materials and reserving a spot, visit their Facebook page.

Lebanese mega star Elissa will be performing in Alexandria on Friday, 16 June in Alex West’s Club. Also performing on stage are Massar Egbari and comedien Alaa El Sheikh. Just remember that doors open at 2pm. Click here to reserve your tickets.

Calling fans of composer Hany Shenouda and his unique music: Don’t miss out on Shenouda’s concert, along with several other singers, at Cairo Festival City’s Marquee theater on Friday, 16 June. You can get tickets on Ticketsmarche.

Hiba Tawaji is back with her first concert in Cairo after three years: The Lebanese singing sensation will be performing in the Cairo Opera house on Friday, 16 June starting from 8:30pm to celebrate the release of her new album, Ba’d Seneen. The performance will be conducted by Maestro Ahmed Aweida and under the supervision of Oussama El-Rahbani. Click here to reserve your tickets.

Egyptian soprano Amira Selim will perform at the National Museum for Egyptian Civilization on Wednesday, 21 June to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the museum’s inauguration. Doors open at 7:30pm and the performance begins at 9:30pm. You can book tickets here.

You can catch El Sofara’s Ahmed Amin at the next SoldOut live interview with TV host Mahmoud Saad on Thursday, 23 June at El Falaki theater at 8:30pm. The live interview will be followed by a performance by singer Nouran Abou Taleb. Tickets for both events are available on Tazkarti.

Cairokee Empire returns: Cairokee is hitting the stage with two mega-concerts at New Cairo’s Manara Arena on Thursday, 27 June and Saturday, 29 June. Tickets are available on Tazkarti here and here.

? UNDER THE LAMPLIGHT-

Is it love? Or is it just Exciting Times? Author Naoise Dolan’s debut novel Exciting Times tells the story of a love triangle in the modern age featuring protagonist Ava — an Irish expat in Hong Kong — her unlabeled relationship with British banker Julian and her what-if with lawyer Edith. The story unfolds fairly slowly: Ava is a fun character to watch unravel, with her confident expression of her opinions, her desperate need to be liked, and glaring flaws presented in her low self esteem and being a pushover. The novel explores the characters’ relationship with class, capitalism, and relationships. “That tangle of revulsion and attraction to Ava’s perpetual ambivalence — and the accompanying desire to reach out from this side of the looking glass and gently assure her this is simply a condition of being human — is one reason to keep reading,” the LA Times wrote.

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4

GO WITH THE FLOW

What the markets are doing on 11 June, 2023

The EGX30 rose 1.3% at today’s close on turnover of EGP 2.61 bn. Local investors were net buyers. The index is up 21.5% YTD.

In the green: Palm Hills Developments (+7.1%), Mopco (+7.0%) and Fawry (+6.2%).

In the red: ADIB (-3.6%), Ibnsina Pharma (-2.6%) and Edita (-2.0%).

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Our weekly look at the issues, trends, and policies that are shaping Egypt's manufacturing industries.

Published every Sunday in EnterprisePM.

Read Inside Industry
5

INSIDE INDUSTRY

Meet our Manufacturer of the Month: Egyptian glassware manufacturer Pyramid Glass

MANUFACTURER OF THE MONTH- Once a month, Inside Industry will be dedicated to profiling a manufacturer — whether locally bred or an international player with a manufacturing base here in Egypt. The monthly feature will cover manufacturers in different industries to look at their success stories, the challenges they have faced as local manufacturers, and the path forward as Egypt looks to build a more robust local industry. Our first Manufacturer of the Month is Pyramid Glass, a leading glassware manufacturer.

Pyramid Glass produces glass tableware products, including everything that ranges from cups, plates, and mugs, to fruit bowls and trays. All our products have a functional use, or can be used for decorative purposes. The company began manufacturing in 2009 with a factory set up in Borg El Arab. Pyramid Glass also has a sub-brand called Value Glass, which is more focused on direct to retail exports and has a more exclusive clientele than the rest of our brands.

We export nearly 100% of our products to international markets because we’re a freezone company. With our current export volumes, we place as a large enterprise by Egyptian standards when it comes to exports — and we plan on tripling capacity within the next year. We currently export to over 60 countries in North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia. Our export markets include Brazil, Turkey, South Africa, the US, and the majority of eastern and western Europe.

Considering we’re geared almost entirely towards exports, we make sure our products are competitive abroad by prioritizing consistent good quality and service. We achieve this by ensuring we have an attentive quality control team in place and always put the customer first — these two things help us maintain a smooth flowing supply chain both internally and externally. We also created our sub-brand, Value Glass, to better compete in the retail market abroad. And we participate in fairs and exhibitions abroad, such as Ambiente in Frankfurt, to gain more exposure and create a presence in international markets.

The vast majority of our manufacturing components are locally sourced. In terms of quantity, it’s about 80% locally sourced and about 20% from imports, so we rely heavily on the local market for components and raw materials. However, in terms of the cost burden, it’s not the same 80/20 split — imported materials are more expensive, so they account for more than 80% of our spending on materials and inputs.

We don’t have any immediate plans to change where we source our materials from, especially since the majority of our inputs are coming from the local market, which reduces our exposure to issues with imports and any currency fluctuations. However, the government is working on building a soda ash factory, which could help us heavily reduce our reliance on imports. This is definitely something we’re keeping an eye on, since it could change the equation of how and where we source our materials.

As a freezone company, we also benefit from VAT exemptions on our local purchases, which is a great incentive the government offers companies like ours. Our experience has been that the government has been supportive and lenient on their policies for freezone companies. Although there’s always room for improvement, there’s been a direct line of communication between us and we see openness to change at the top level of government.

Our main challenge at the moment as a manufacturer in Egypt is the lack of certainty when it comes to the local currency and local tax policies. This uncertainty makes companies more reluctant to commit to larger investments — if they’re unsure whether or not they’ll be able to continue operating when the general economic environment is unstable, it’s difficult to be bullish on the market and commit more money.

Your top industrial development stories for the week:

  • The Egyptian Beauty Company will invest EGP 100 mn to build a new factory in the Gamasa Industrial Zone in order to double production and boost exports of the company’s products. (Al Mal)
  • Roche tech transfer to allow Eva Pharma to produce advanced immunosuppressants: Swiss pharma giant Roche and local meds firm Eva Pharma are set to localize the production of immunosuppressant medications for organ transplant patients.
  • Abdos to build USD 30 mn plastics factory in SCZone: Abdos — an Indian firm specializing in the production of plastic lab equipment — inked an agreement to build a plastics factory worth USD 30 mn in Orascom Industrial Parks’ (OIP) Sokhna complex.
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THE ENTERPRISE ENTERTAINMENT CALENDAR

MAY

17 May-10 June (Wednesday-Saturday): Cairo Cinema Days at Zawya Cinema, Downtown Cairo.

27 May-27 June (Saturday-Tuesday): Annual Flower Exhibition from 10am at the Agricultural Museum.

JUNE

1-10 June (Thursday-Saturday): Cairo Food Week.

9 June (Friday): TriFactory Madinaty Half Marathon.

9-10 June (Friday-Saturday): RiseUp Retail, Marakez’s District 5, Cairo.

10 June (Saturday): Thanaweya Amma examinations begin.

15 June (Thursday): Last day of the Traces of Egypt Exhibition at the Grand Egyptian Museum.

28 June-2 July (Wednesday-Sunday): Eid El Adha (TBC).

30 June (Friday): June 30 Revolution Day.

JULY

18 July (Tuesday): Islamic New Year.

20 July (Thursday): National holiday in observance of Islamic New Year (TBC).

23 July (Sunday): Revolution Day.

27 July (Thursday): National holiday in observance of Revolution Day.

SEPTEMBER

26 September (Tuesday): Prophet Muhammad’s birthday (TBC).

28 September (Thursday): National holiday in observance of Prophet Muhammad’s birthday (TBC).

OCTOBER

6 October (Friday): Armed Forces Day.

13 October- 20 October (Friday-Friday): The sixth edition of El Gouna Film Festival (GFF).

EVENTS WITH NO SET DATE

2023: The inauguration of the Grand Egyptian Museum.

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