Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and happy Thursday. The weekend is finally here and the news cycle seems relatively subdued this afternoon.
THE BIG STORY TODAY
10 mn vehicles running on our roads: Total number of licensed vehicles across Egypt saw a slight increase to 9.95 mn by the end of 2023 from 9.94 mn a year before, according to data released by state statistics agency Capmas today (pdf).
By the numbers: Private passenger cars accounted for 52.3% of total licenced vehicles in the country, while the number of buses reached 172.4k or 1.7% of total vehicles by the end of last year.
Cairo (obviously) led the motorcade with 26.2% of total licensed vehicles (2.6 mn vehicles), followed by 1.4 mn vehicles in Giza, then Alexandria with 731.4k vehicles, while North Sinai was the least with only 41.9k vehicles by the end of 2023.
PSA- EgyptAir has resumed flights between Cairo and Dubai after one day of suspension following Tuesday’s bout of torrential rain that hit the UAE, the national flag carrier said in a statement today.
THE BIG STORY ABROAD
It’s a busy day today with a lot of news making the rounds in the international press. Emergency workers in the UAE are still on damage control after the rainstorm that flooded the country on Tuesday. Damage assessment is still underway, with the airport still facing disruptions. Netanyahu is still deliberating whether or not to respond to Iran’s attack despite urges from leaders around the world to deescalate the situation. The financial world has seen the largest sovereign wealth fund report a first-quarter profit of USD 109.9 bn thanks to the technology boom. The national investor reported that the robust yields from tech stocks were offset by excessively weak returns from real estate. (Reuters | Bloomberg | CNBC)
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PHD has another North Coast project brewing: Real estate developer Palm Hills Development (PHD) is teaming up with Cleopatra Group todevelopa project in North Coast’s Sidi Heneish. PHD confirmed the news in a disclosure to EGX today (pdf) without naming the other partner company.
There is a clarification though: The real estate developer clarified that the project’s expected revenues and the partnership structure that were first mentioned in news reports yesterday are both not correct, as the project’s general plan is not finalized yet. The company aims to begin selling units at the project by 2Q 2024, the disclosure added.
☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Friday’s weather is more of the same with the mercury rising to a 30°C high and dropping to a low of 18°C at night, according to our favorite weather app.°C
Don’t let your parents tell you video games are a waste of time, kids: Science can leverage the popularity and accessibility of video games to boost the reach and data collection in research projects, writes Technology Networks. A new initiative has brought together 4.5 mn gamers world wide to help reconstruct microbial evolutionary histories via video game Borderlands 3. “In half a day, the Borderlands Science players collected five times more data about microbial DNA sequences than our earlier game Phylo had collected over a 10-year period,” McGill associate professor Jerome Waldispuhl said.
The game works by players getting rid of the anomalies that the computers created when they analyzed the microbes’ DNA sequences. Scientists have discovered that computers are not the best at organizing DNA information, according to this trailer and explainer narrated by actress Mayim Bialik (watch, runtime: 3:37). Since microbes have similar but not identical DNA it makes it hard to map their sequences, as a result, several minor mistakes begin to turn up when they are punched into a computer. These eventually snowball and undermine the analysis process. Borderlands Science breaks down these lengthy sequences into a game experience that looks a lot like Candy Crush’s line-up of sweet treats. So, when a user arranges similar looking pieces, it means that one of the computer-generated mistakes has been removed and a sequence has been corrected. Hurrah.
Futuristic science fiction: By engaging in the project, the 4.5 mn gamers not only help boost the number of results “but they are also helping lay the groundwork for improved AI programs that can be used in future,” Technology Networks reports.
A population of possibilities: “Almost half of the world population is playing with videogames,” McGill adjunct professor Attila Szantner — who came up with the idea — said. “It is of utmost importance that we find new creative ways to extract value from all this time and brainpower that we spend gaming,” he added. The project “shows that we can fight the fear or misconceptions that members of the public may have about science and start building communities who work collectively to advance knowledge,” Waldispuhl said.
Guy Ritchie is back, folks, and with him comes the glorious mayhem of The Gentlemen.This Netflix action-comedy series is set against the backdrop of British aristocracy and the booming cannabis industry. It’s a wild party where posh British accents are punctuated with flying fists and enough Mary Jane to fuel a royal high tea.
Don’t let the title fool you, this isn’t a remake of the film. While not connected plot-wise, both the film and the series take place in the same universe. You’ll catch references of White Widow Super Cheese and your favorite fixers Raymond and Stevens. Ritchie’s style carries over with the same fast-paced action, sharp dialogue, and surprising plot twists.
A penniless aristocrat is living — literally — above a thriving drug business. Eddie Horniman (Theo James) is an aristocrat who inherits his father’s sprawling estate, only to discover a lucrative business growing beneath the manicured lawns of his estate. With no criminal experience, Eddie struggles with his unexpected inheritance. Having to choose between taking over the business or losing the estate, Eddie is thrown headfirst into the world of gangsters, blackmail, and high stakes. Such fun.
The slow-burn pacing might not be for everyone. The series takes its time to unravel the intricate plot, focussing on character development and building suspense. This is balanced out by tense scenes and violent outbursts. Giancarlo Esposito plays a magnificent antagonist (you may remember him as Gustavo Fring in Breaking Bad), a wealthy American wine connoisseur with his eyes set on Halstead Manor.
⚽ Atalanta will host Liverpool for the second leg of the Europa League quarter finals at 9pm tonight. The Reds lost 3-0 in the first leg at Anfield, which is making it difficult for them to make a comeback in Bergamo.
The other matches in the Europa League tonight are as follows (all start at 9pm):
Roma vs Milan (first leg result: 1-0)
West Ham vs Leverkusen (first leg result: 0-2)
Marseille vs Benfica (first leg result: 1-2)
Over in the Egyptian league, we have four matches this weekend:
Ceramica Cleopatra vs Al Ittihad (4pm, today)
Ismaily vs ZED FC (7pm, tonight)
Future FC vs Pharco FC (7pm, tonight)
Baladiyet El Mahallah vs Al-Mokawloon (4pm, Friday)
And in African competitions, TP Mazembe will host Al Ahly for the CAF Champions League semi-finals next Saturday at 3pm while the return match in Cairo is scheduled for Friday, 26 April.
The English Premier League is back on Saturday with three matches in gameweek 34when Luton Town takes on Brentford and Sheffield clashes with Burnley at 4pm, but all eyes will be at Molineux Stadium as the Wolves will host the "wounded" Gunners at 8:30pm.
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Meanwhile, Man City will take on Chelsea for the FA Cup semi-final at 6:15pm this Saturday.
Other major European league matches we’re following this weekend:
Cagliari vs Juventus (Serie A, 8:45pm, Friday)
Valencia vs Real Betis (La Liga, 6:30pm, Saturday)
Girona vs Cádiz (La Liga, 9pm, Saturday)
Empoli vs Napoli (Serie A, 6pm, Saturday)
Union Berlin vs Bayern Munich (6:30pm, Saturday)
Related
? OUT AND ABOUT- (all times CLT)
HAPPENING THIS WEEK-
AUC’s CultureFest is here. This event — held at AUC Tahrir until Monday, 22 April — is a celebration of the Cairene spirit. Panel discussions about Cairo’s history, people, and evolving culture will kick off the festival, and will be accompanied by live music, a book bazaar, a local market, and art exhibitions. Register for the event here.
In collaboration with Tanmia Bookstores AUC Culture Tahrir Fest will be hosting a BookBazaar until Monday, 22 April from 10am-9pm. Lucky attendees could find books with 20% and up to 75% slashed off of their price. The bazaar is open to the public, all you have to do is pre-register your attendance here.
German electronic music group Keinemusik are performing at the Giza Pyramids for the first time tomorrow at 7pm. Tickets are selling out fast and are in their seventh wave, get them now on Ticketsmarche.
An Arabic adaptation of Federico García Lorca’s great tragedy, Blood Wedding will be showcased at Instituto Cervantes in Cairo tonight and in Alexandria on Sunday, 21 April. The tickets are without charge but admission will not be allowed after curtains are raised at 8pm— so make sure you get there on time.
Fan-favorite spinners Disco Misr will be performing at CJC 610 along with Bakirtomorrow Friday, 19 April. For reservations message their Facebook page.
Join From Waste To Good Taste in their Sustainable Design Initiative at The FactoryDowntown from tomorrow Friday, 19 April till Sunday, 21 April. Environmental activists and influencers will come together to preach sustainability and how to adapt it in your everyday life. They are also offering workshops on how to upcycle and recycle old bits and pieces in your house to create fashionable or decorative items. Attendance is without charge — all you have to do is pre-register your attendance here.
Soothe your ears with an evening of classical music with the Cairo Symphony Orchestra at the Cairo Opera House in their performance of Great Symphonies IX and a collection of the world's most famous musical pieces led by Maestro Ahmed Saidi on Saturday, 20 April. The concert starts at 8pm, get your tickets at Tazkarti.
HAPPENING LATER-
Bibliothek Egypt is hosting a book signing for Noor Abdul El Majeed’s latest novel Siyadat al-Qadi on Monday, 22 April from 6:30pm.
Gamers, buckle up for Egypt’s biggest gaming festival:Insomnia is back at the InternationalExhibitions Center from Thursday, 25 April to Saturday, 27 April, making it an immersive weekend of quests, level-ups, and never-ending clicking game experiences. Get your tickets here.
Word Matters is for all the language geeks out there. Grammar might get tricky, but there’s a reason behind all the rules we’ve learned/hated to learn. Even every word you know is likely to have a long and complex origin that you might have never heard about. This podcast explores all of that and more, helping you understand how the English language came to be.
Academic yet passionate, is how we’d describe the hosts of the podcast who happen to be Merriam-Webster editors. Even though the content is well-researched and they clearly know what they’re talking about, their passion shines through their discussions taking it beyond a boring lecture to an interesting analysis of something we use every day. Along with the facts, the hosts’ witty quips make it a much more enjoyable listen.
Episodes are around 20 mins long, making it prime bingeable content. We’d say you could get through several in a day, unlike most other educational podcasts that might be slightly heavier. Unfortunately, though, no episodes have been produced since 2022, but they have 102 other ones to keep you covered for a while.
The EGX30 fell by 4.5% at today’s close on turnover of EGP 5.7 bn (13.5% above the 90-day average). Foreign investors were net sellers. The index is up 13.8% YTD.
In the green: Egypt Kuwait Holding - USD (+0.8%).
In the red: Sidi Kerir Petrochemicals (-9.0%), Fawry (-8.4%), and Oriental Weavers (-8.2%).
Climate change is accelerating red fire ant populations and it could spell trouble for agriculture worldwide: Invasive species present a considerable threat to our health, agriculture, and biodiversity — and red fire ants are among the world’s costliest to deal with. They’ve recently been found to have built up significant populations in Europe and are expected to cover 7 percent of the continent under current environmental conditions, according to a 2023 study. Their growth could have far-reaching consequences on the continent and beyond.
Invasive species come with a large price tag: Invasive alien species, a term used to describe non-native organisms introduced to new ecosystems by humans or human-related activity, reportedly costs the global economy some USD 423 bn per year, according to an Intergovernmental Science Policy Platform on Biodiversity and EcosystemServices (IPBES) report. These plants, mammals, and insects can wreak havoc on local ecosystems by introducing disease, preying on native flora and fauna, and destroying crops.
Fire ants are particularly pesky: The insects are estimated to cost the US around USD 1 bnannually. Separate studies have found red fire ants to be the fifth most expensive invasive species in the world, costing some EUR 20 bn in damage between 1970 and 2017. Their venomous sting often causes them to dominate local ant species and makes them especially dangerous to smaller amphibians, birds, and even fish — all of which contribute to the degradation of local ecosystems and ultimately our food systems, as well.
Climate change is driving the proliferation of invasive species. For fire ants, which trace their origins to South America, a warmer Europe makes for a far more forgiving climate for their populations to thrive. Already weakened ecosystems — a result of human encroachment along with climate change-based stressors — are also making it easier for these invasive species to multiply. Coastal Mediterranean towns are especially vulnerable due to their exposure to trans-continental trade and host climatic conditions ideally suited to their survival.
But it’s not all doom and gloom: Monitoring and early detection of invasive species — especially red fire ants — can help localities take preemptive action to mitigate their spread before populations balloon.
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