Good morning, wonderful people, and happy Monday. The newsflow is keeping us on our toes, with no-let up on the privatization murmurs, lively debate over next year’s fiscal budget in the House of Representatives, and more industry investment news. And in good news for our localization push, a fourth international firm is reportedly now making smartphones right here at home.

THE BIG STORY here at home: More hints of progress for the state privatization program. Reports are that two state-owned pharma firms could see new investors come on board via a capital increase, and ADQ wants a piece of state-owned fertilizers firm Kima. More on both stories in the newswell, below.

PLUS- The Red Devils emerged the victors of the African Champions League last night: Al Ahly managed to bring it home, leveling 1-1 late in the game against Morocco's Wydad on Casablancan turf. Al Ahy’s 2-1 victory in Cairo last Sunday in the first leg of the final meant the tie was all they needed to clinch a record-breaking 11th CAF title.

DATA POINT-

Core inflation rose again in May: Core inflation — often seen as a superior measure of price growth because it strips out volatile items such as food and fuel — rose to 40.3% y-o-y from 38.6% in April, according to central bank data released yesterday. Annual urban inflation returned to near record highs in May after April’s brief respite, clocking in at 32.7% y-o-y from 30.6% the month before. The central bank said it would release its monthly inflation note for May this Thursday. Reutersalso had the story.

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.

HAPPENING TODAY-

Iraqi PM in town: Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani will land in Egypt today for an “important visit,” Iraqi News Agency (INA) reports. The visit will focus on Egyptian-Iraqi relations and future cooperation, a government spokesperson told the agency without providing further details.

Ten MoUs incoming: Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly and his Iraqi counterpart will ink 10 MoUs in the fields of reconstruction, housing, labor, and sports, Undersecretary of the Iraqi Commerce Ministry Sattar Al Jabri told INA.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.

There’s no single BIG STORY ABROAD dominating the global headlines this morning. Us outlets have the latest on the Trump classified documents debacle (WSJ | AP News) and how it’s shaping the race for the presidential nomination in the Republican party (NYT).

The business press is focused on Fed week: The US Federal Reserve is expected to keep its benchmark interest rateunchanged within the 5.0-5.25% range at its policy meeting this Tuesday and Wednesday, Bloombergreports. This would be the first pause since the central bank began aggressively tightening policy in March last year, which has seen rates rise 500 bps.

Hold now, hike soon, cut later: The markets are expecting policymakers to hold off on a further hike this week to assess the impact of the combined 500-bps of hikes on the country’s financial system and the economy even as inflation remains significantly above target. An additional 25-bps hike has been priced in for the Fed’s July meeting followed by a similar-sized cut in December.

Some economists don’t think the market has this correct: A majority of leading economists polled by the Financial Times think the Fed will have to raise rates by at least another 50 bps this year in order to stamp out persistent inflation. More than two-thirds (67%) of the 42 economists surveyed expect rates to peak between 5.5% and 6.0% later this year, while a majority don’t see the Fed loosening policy until 2024.

New inflation data to give the Fed breathing room? Fed officials will have access to new CPI data on Tuesday. Headline CPI is expected to have cooled to 4.1% in May, down from4.9% in April, and core CPI is expected to grow at its slowest pace since November 2021, making the case for a pause in rate hikes, according to Bloomberg.

THE REALIGNMENT-

Shoukry calls to congratulate Turkey’s new FM: Foreign Affairs Minister Sameh Shoukry congratulated Hakan Fidan on his appointment and said he looked forward to working with him to continue down the path of normalizing relations, per a Foreign Affairs Ministry statement. They also discussed “an exchange of visits at all levels,” while Hakan “stressed the importance of moving forward with the process of restoring full relations.”

Why it matters: The new Turkish foreign minister was appointed to the cabinet following Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s reelection, in what many took as a sign Turkey will double down on its efforts to thaw relations with Arab countries including Egypt. Erdogan and President Abdel Fattah El Sisi are expected to meet soon for their first face-to-face talks.

AND- Chinese and South African leaders discuss peace in Ukraine: South African President Cyril Ramaphosa called Chinese president Xi Jinping on Friday to discuss the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the South African presidency said in a statement on Saturday. Ramaphosa briefed Jinping about the African leaders’ upcoming visit to Russia and Ukraine in a bid to end the war. "President Xi Jinping commended the initiative by the African continent and acknowledged the impact the conflict has had on human lives and on food security in Africa," the statement reads.

Remember: Egypt is involved with this. President El Sisi, along with the leaders of South Africa, Senegal, Uganda, Congo, and Zambia are expected to travel to Kyiv and Moscow later this month in an effort to restart peace talks and bring the 15-month conflict to an end. A proposed peace plan was first mentioned by Ramaphosa last month but no details have been made public. El Sisi discussed the plan with the other African leaders last week.

WAR WATCH-

Clashes erupt once again in Sudan: Intense fighting broke out once more between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) after a 24-hour ceasefire brokered by the US and Saudi Arabia expired, Reuters reports. The fighting was some of the worst seen in weeks, witnesses told the newswire. In ajoint statement, the US and Saudi praised both sides for “effective command and control” during the brief truce but said violations had occurred and expressed “disappointment” at how quickly fighting had resumed.

FROM THE RUMOR MILL-

Could Gulf investors come to Alfa’s rescue? The supermarket chain is in advanced discussions with unnamed Qatari and Emirati investment funds to sell a 25% stake in the company, Al Shorouk reported Saturday, citing an anonymous source. The capital injection would provide Alfa with enough liquidity to repay its debts, the source said, adding that an agreement with one of the funds and creditor banks will arrive “in the coming days.” The newspaper reported last week that Alfa had begun closing branches as it looks to sell off assets in order to repay EGP 100 mn of debt to lenders and suppliers.

CORRECTION-

A story we published in Thursday’s EnterpriseAM incorrectly stated that the International Finance Corporation (IFC) is lending USD 650k to local microfinance providers. The USD 650k figure refers to the budget of the support program it is offering to microlenders. We have since updated the story on our website.

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.

*** It’s Blackboard day: We have our weekly look at the business of education in Egypt, from pre-K through the highest reaches of higher ed.

In today’s issue: We have the details on ElSewedy EdTech’s plans for a new university, ElSewedy University of Technology - Polytechnic of Egypt.