Good morning, friends. While it’s a quiet morning on the home front, it is anything but across the region after Israel carried out an attack in Doha, killing a handful of Hamas members and a Qatari security official and significantly hurting ceasefire efforts, which Qatar has been a key part in. During a presser after the assault, the Qatari prime minister said his country reserves the right to retaliate and called for a “response from the entire region.”

MEANWHILE, AT HOME- Exporters want more subsidized financing in efforts to better align their output with the government’s export growth plans and the Labor Ministry is cracking down on unlicensed foreign workers.

WORLD CUP WATCH- The Pharaohs are one step closer to the 2026 FIFA World Cup following a goalless draw with Burkina Faso last night. A victory would’ve seen Egypt secure its spot in the football tournament early — we still are in the lead of Group A and continue to hold a five-point lead over Burkina Faso.

What’s next? Egypt will face Djibouti and Guinea-Bissau on 6 and 13 October — we need just two points from the matches to secure our spot, which would mark our fourth time making it to the World Cup.

You asked, and we listened.

Introducing Morning Drive: your daily 10-minute audio download of the essential business headlines shaping Egypt.

Hosted by ‘Synthetic Salma’ — an AI-powered version of our Executive Editor Salma El-Saeed — you get our rigorous journalism that’s always on point, delivered on time in a consistent voice every morning.

Stay tuned for the first episode drop on 14 September.

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PSA-

WEATHER- In the latest sign that fall is fast approaching, temps will peak at 32°C in Cairo today, before cooling down to a low of 23°C, according to our favorite weather app.

It’s more or less the same in Alexandria, which is in for a high of 31°C and a low of 22°C.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

Labor Ministry cracks down on unlicensed foreign workers: The Labor Ministry has launched its first campaigns under the new Labor Law, which officially came into force earlier this month, according to a statement. The ministry said it has detected 201 violations related to foreign work permits in the Red Sea governorate alone, with fines totaling over EGP 20 mn. Companies found in violation will face fines between EGP 20k and EGP 100k, depending on the number of workers — with repeat offenses doubling the penalty.

More inspections to come: The ministry will soon roll out inspections focused on other key pillars of the new labor law, including minimum wage compliance.

REMEMBER- Egypt’s revamped Labor Law came into force on 1 September, introducing fresh rules for employment contracts, foreign workers, working hours, and more. We dove into the ins and outs of the new law in our coverage here.

CAPITAL MARKETS-

Catalyst Partners’ SPAC Catalyst Partners Middle East is getting ready for its trading debut on the EGX, with plans to raise EGP 1 bn to scale up two recently acquired companies, Al Ahly Pharos said in a statement seen by EnterpriseAM. One quarter of the proceeds will go toward online lending marketplace Qardy, while the remaining three quarters will go toward Catalysts Partners Holding.

SUKUK WATCH-

Weekly sukuk roundup: The yield to maturity on our sovereign sukuk fell to 7.44% last Friday, down 0.27 percentage points from the week before, according to the Egyptian Financial Company for Sovereign Taskeek’s weekly roundup (pdf). Egyptian sovereign sukuk prices inched up by USD 0.05 throughout the week to USD 101.59.

HAPPENING TODAY-

#1- Ferchem will begin trading on the EGX in just a few hours under the ticker FERC.CA, with an opening price of EGP 45.61 per share, according to an EGX bulletin(pdf).

REMEMBER-The company got the regulatory green light this week to begin trading after it listed 400 mn of its shares on the bourse. The approval came after it absorbed Aswan Fertilizers and Chemical Industries and Abu Zaabal Fertilizers and Chemicals Company, bringing its issued capital to EGP 800 mn.

#2- Inflation nation no more? Capmas will release August’s inflation data later today, and many are hopeful that inflation will stay on its downward trajectory. Annual headline urban inflation cooled by a whole percentage point in July to 13.9%, marking the second straight month of easing inflation and giving the central bank confidence to restart its interest rate easing cycle last month. The CBE expects inflation to continue its downward path to hit an average of 14-15% y-o-y in 2025 and continue to make progress toward its 7% y-o-y (± 2 percentage points) target for 4Q 2026 — an assessment most analysts seem broadly in agreement with.

The polls are in: A Reuters poll of 13 analysts sees inflation easing to a median 12.7% in August. Three analysts polled by the newswire see core inflation remaining stable at 11.8% y-o-y.

#3- It’s day three of EFG Hermes’ Annual London Investor Conference, which is being held at Emirates Stadium under the theme Investing Right in MENA. The four-day gathering brings together 710 participants from around the world, including 285 investors from 146 global institutions, alongside 131 companies. This year’s edition spotlights Saudi Arabia, with 82 Tadawul-listed firms in attendance. We’ll have the rundown of the highlights in tomorrow morning’s edition of EnterpriseAM Egypt.

HAPPENING TOMORROW-

#1- Orascom Construction will officially join the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) tomorrow, moving its primary listing from Nasdaq Dubai, the contractor said in a statement (pdf). Once listed on the ADX under the symbol ORAS, the company’s shares will be dually listed on the ADX and EGX. The opening price on ADX will be set at the closing price on the EGX at the end of today and converted into AED using the exchange rate published by the Central Bank of the UAE.

REMEMBER-The listing shift comes as the ADX continues to assert itself as one of the region’s capital markets heavyweights, offering deeper liquidity and stronger institutional flows via entities like sovereign wealth funds ADQ and Mubadala.

#2- Investors have until tomorrow to apply for the latest industrial land offering through the digital platform Made in Egypt, according to an Industry Ministry statement. The offering includes around 1.4k serviced plots across 23 governorates, covering 6.8 mn sqm, with unit sizes ranging from 240 sqm to 500k sqm.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

Israel has taken its cross-border campaign against Hamas into uncharted territory, launching what it claimed to be ‘a precision airstrike’ in Doha targeting the group’s political leadership. The strike — which killed five Hamas members including the son of top negotiator Khalil Al Hayya — came as Hamas leaders gathered to discuss a US-backed ceasefire proposal. While Hamas claims senior figures survived, the attack has upended fragile truce efforts and drawn sharp condemnation from Qatar, which labeled the strike a “flagrant violation.” A Qatari security officer was among those killed, and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani warned that the talks now “lack any validity.”

Qatar said it will reserve the right to retaliate: The prime minister told reporters in a press conference (watch, runtime: 2:26) following the strikes that “Qatar is committed to act in a decisive way” against any threats to its territories and “will reserve the right to take all the needed measures to retaliate.”

The US, meanwhile, sought to distance itself, with President Donald Trump calling the strike an “unfortunate incident.” (Reuters | The Guardian | New York Times | CNN | BBC | Bloomberg | Associated Press)

Egypt strongly condemned the attack, calling it a “dangerous precedent” and a direct assault on the sovereignty of Qatar, according to statements from Ittihadiya and the Foreign Ministry. Cairo said the strike undermines mediation efforts, puts the stability of the region at risk, and reflects Israel’s intent to sabotage chances of reaching a ceasefire agreement.

El Sisi spoke with Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Jordan’s King Abdullah II following the attack, stressing Egypt’s categorical rejection of any violation of Qatar’s sovereignty and support for measures Doha takes to protect its stability.

AND- Trump is calling on the EU to impose tariffs of up to 100% on Chinese and Indian imports in a bid to pressure Russia — and is promising the US will match them if Brussels steps up. Speaking during a closed-door US-EU meeting in Washington, Trump said the West should keep the tariffs in place “until the Chinese agree to stop buying [Russian] oil.” (Financial Times | Reuters)

ALSO- The iPhone 17 is here: Apple announced its latest wave of products — the iPhone 17 and updated versions of its Apple Watch and AirPods — but the market wasn’t impressed. Apple shares dipped 1.6% following the event, as critics called the product refresh “incremental” and warned that Apple has yet to make its promised leap into AI. (Reuters | Bloomberg | Financial Times | CNBC | CNN)

ALSO WORTH NOTING THIS MORNING-

#1- Macron appoints new PM: French President Emmanuel Macron has appointed his long-time ally and Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu as prime minister in a bid to push through a contested EUR 44 bn austerity plan and end months of political deadlock. His appointment follows the ousting of two prime ministers in less than a year and comes ahead of planned nationwide protests against proposed spending cuts. (Reuters | Financial Times | New York Times | Associated Press)

#2- A sweeping youth-led anti-corruption movement in Nepal forced Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli to resign yesterday. Protests were triggered by his government banning 26 social media platforms, including Facebook and Instagram. The movement has put fresh pressure on Nepal’s political class amid deep economic inequality and joblessness, with calls mounting for Kathmandu’s mayor Balendra Shah, a 35-year-old former rapper, to take the helm. (Reuters | BBC | Associated Press | New York Times)

*** It’s Hardhat day — your weekly briefing of all things infrastructure in Egypt: EnterpriseAM’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 look at how France’s RATP Dev is bringing global standards to Cairo’s Metro Line 3 and the LRT.