We need to sell something — and soon

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What We're Tracking Today

Privatization is dominating the news agenda here in Egypt

Good morning, wonderful people, and happy THURSDAY to you all.

PRIVATIZATION is the big story of the morning here at home, with suggestions in the press that the state’s selldown of its stake in Telecom Egypt could begin any moment now — and that high-profile Gulf energy outfits are among seven parties said to be interested in buying the country’s two largest wind farms.

A stake sale — any stake sale — cannot come soon enough: Updates and reassurances on privatization are welcome, but the state needs to pull the trigger on transactions. That view, widespread for some time in our community, is now a matter of record in the domestic media after Lamees El Hadidi (the queen of late night talk in Egypt) zeroed in on the issue multiple times this week. A big sticker price on the first of these sales would be very nice indeed — but at this stage, the value (and valuation) is much less important than the simple signal that we are able to transact. Multiple sales in a row would be even better.

Government officials are confident we’ll see stake sales between now and the end of June, sources with first-hand knowledge of the process tell us. And they’re delivering the same message to both international investors and foreign diplomats.

Strategic investors have clear appetite for Egypt. The reality is that public markets investors are looking elsewhere right now, and they’re not coming back anytime soon. Strategics, on the other hand, are committing capital. Witness all the interest in technology, retail, tourism, infrastructure, pharma, and even automotive. Our friends at DPI pulled the trigger on two investments in the past month and a bit (Macryl and Kazyon). The UAE’s Khazna is partnering with Benya on a USD 250 mn data center this week. Kuwait’s Agility is joining with Hassan Allam Utilities to invest in logistics parks. We could cite a dozen other examples.

ALSO- Not a day goes by that a Saudi, Emirati or European tech player doesn’t move a large number of software development jobs to Egypt. Most do so very quietly, though we hope a major global assurance outfit that is doing the same will make a loud public announcement of its plans later today.

But the market wants to see movement on privatization (and reform) — and they want to see big-ticket asset sales, ideally to high-profile GCC investors.

Our inability to transact would have consequences, as Moody’s underscored on Tuesday when it signaled in a statement (pdf) that it could downgrade our credit rating for the second time this year if our external position continues to deteriorate.

The tl;dr on Moody’s: “Slower than anticipated progress with the state-owned asset sale strategy … risks undermining Egypt's financing plans, weakening the sovereign's foreign exchange liquidity and eroding confidence in the currency” could prompt it to go ahead with the downgrade, it said. Our ability to generate FX inflows — particularly through the privatization program — is key to it maintaining our rating, it added.

We’re only four days away from meeting with some of you at the Enterprise Exports and FDI Forum, taking place at the Four Seasons at the Nile Plaza on Monday, 15 May.

We’re proud to announce that our friend Shams Eweis, corporate affairs director, Egypt, North Africa and Levant at Mars, is joining us for the forum. Are you? Shams Eweis will be speaking on why Mars chose to build its regional export hub here in Egypt and how it successfully managed to export the majority of its output here. She will be joined on stage by Tarek Hosny, head of investments and projects at Fertiglobe, and Mohamed Talaat Khalifa, CEO of Concrete, who will share their playbook on how they built successful export-led businesses.

Who else is speaking? Among the CEOs, top execs, bankers, and development finance folks speaking at the conference are (in no particular order): Tarek Kamel, CEO of Nestle Egypt; Hossam Abou Moussa, partner at Apis; Hassan Massoud, associate director and head of private equity (Southern Mediterranean) at EBRD; Omar Elsahy, general manager of Amazon Egypt; Khaled Morsy, CEO at DB Schenker; Yasmine Khamis, chair of The Orientals Group, Cheick-Oumar Sylla, director for North Africa and Horn of Africa at IFC; Shady William, managing director of IDG; Helmy Ghazi, deputy CEO of HSBC Egypt; Mark Wyllie, CEO of Beyti; Kareem Abou Ghaly, chairman and CEO at Pasta Regina; Hossam Sallab, CEO and vice-chairman of Sallab Group and Royal Ceramica; Nada El Ahwal, CSO of Transmar; Nadia El-Tawil, investment officer at AfricInvest; Mostafa Bedeir, CEO of Giza Seeds and Herbs; Abdallah Sallam, CEO at Madinet Masr; Yassir Zouaoui, partner at McKinsey; and Mohamed ElGebely, team leader at USAID Trade.

Topics and live interviews will include:

Why exports and FDI are the way forward and what lessons have worked from around the world;
How to attract foreign partners and figure out what they are looking for;
What are the fundamentals to creating an export and / or FDI strategy;
What it takes to secure a place in a multinational’s supply chain.
How industrial clusters could expedite exports, FDI and possibly be an avenue for SME development;
How Egypt’s industries need to be open to evolution to become more competitive.

Tap or click here to explore the full agenda.

** Have you confirmed your attendance? Invitations have been sent out over the past few weeks. If you have yet to confirm your attendance and would still like to join us, please reply to the invitation with an RSVP.

HAPPENING TODAY-

The SCZone is in the Netherlands: Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) CEO Walid Gamal El Din is in Amsterdam to meet local business leaders and officials from the Port of Rotterdam, according to a statement. The SCZone has traveled to Vietnam and Japan this year and is expected to soon head to China.

HAPPENING NEXT WEEK-

It’s interest rate week: The Central Bank of Egypt will hold its policy meeting on Thursday, 18 May. We’ll be out with our customary rate poll in Sunday’s EnterpriseAM.

Car import scheme wraps up: The expat car import initiative will draw to a close on 14 May.

The Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) will launch the country’s firstpreciousmetals fund on Sunday.

Endeavor Egypt is celebrating its 15th birthday at the GEM next week: The startup network heads to the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) next Friday, 19 May, to mark its 15th anniversary.

The House general assembly is in recess until the end of the month: MPs will break for two weeks before reconvening on 28 May.

THE BIG STORIES ABROAD-

The US debt ceiling is continuing to make headlines in the global business press this morning with still no agreement in sight. In a fresh round of talks yesterday Republican lawmakers demanded fresh spending cuts, something the Democrats are yet to entertain. The two sides have to come to an agreement to raise the USD 31.4 tn debt ceiling by the end of the month or the country risks entering a historic default. (Reuters | Bloomberg)

Google just made its move in the intensifying AI arms race: Following Microsoft’s bid to overhaul the concept of search as we know it with its new AI-integrated Bing, the king of search has found itself suddenly playing catch-up as Satya Nadella and co. plough bns of USD into large language models. Google yesterday unveiled its response: a new AI-powered search engine, new AI tools in GoogleDocs and GMail, and an updated version of its Bard chatbot, all powered by the company’s version of ChatGPT: PaLM 2.

DATA POINT- The Madbouly government has purchased 1.6 mn tons of local wheat since the local harvest season kicked off last month, ministry officials told Reuters yesterday. The state is now 40% to meeting its 4-mn-ton target for the season, which ends in August. The government has hiked prices to EGP 1.5k per ardeb in a bid to increase production and reduce reliance on imported wheat.

PSA- Lights out? There’s an Electricity Ministry app for that: The ministry has launched an app that allows customers to log power outages, it said in a statement. You can download it for Android here and for iPhone here. The ministry has also created apps to help deaf and blind customers access its services.

THE REALIGNMENT-

Saudi Arabia and Syria are officially friends again: The Saudi Foreign Ministry yesterday announced that it will “resume its diplomatic mission” in Syria in line with current regional steps taken to resolve ties with Syria.

Assad invited to next Arab League meeting: Saudi King Salman yesterday invited Syrian President Bashar Al Assad to next week’s Arab League summit in Riyadh, Syrian news agency SANA said. Arab foreign ministers voted earlier this week to bring Syria back into the League, 12 years after being suspended for its crackdown on Arab Spring protesters. Arab foreign ministers will gather in the Saudi capital on 19 May.

COME WORK FOR OUR ADVISORY ARM-Enterprise Advisory (formerly known as Inktank Communications) is looking for smart, talented people to help us tell the stories of exciting companies. Enterprise Advisory is the region’s leading investor relations advisory company and works on investor and strategic communications issues that take you deep inside the c-suite. Our clients are in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and beyond. Egyptian and foreign nationals alike are welcome to apply.

We’re running a four-month training program for fresh grads and career switchers and will hire every successful grad of the program.

Tap or click here to learn more, or you can apply directly to jobs@enterprisemea.com and mention “advisory development program” in your subject line.

The TriFactory's Somabay Endurance Festival returns for the fifth time from 25-27 May,bringing together Egypt's multi-sport community for an amazing weekend filled with swimming, cycling, and running throughout the beautiful scenery of Somabay. Select from six different races. Sign up now, and get ready to Experience Endurance.

Egypt could start TE stake sale process this week -Bloomberg

TE stake sale to start this week? Government plans to sell a minority stake in Telecom Egypt (TE) to investors look to be back on the table, with Bloomberg reporting yesterday that it could begin the process of selling a 10% stake in the state-owned telecom giant as soon as this week. TE’s advisors could start inviting bids from institutional investors for the shares, which would be listed on the EGX, people familiar with the matter reportedly told the news outlet.

Selling at a discount: The government will be selling shares at EGP 22.25 apiece, a 3.8% discount from TE’s current share price of EGP 23.14. The transaction would be worth around EGP 3.8 bn (c. USD 122.8 mn) at that price.

The sale has been in the cards since March: The Finance Ministry unveiled its plans to sell shares in the company in March. Reuters reported earlier in the month that the government is looking to sell 10% of the company, a figure which has yet to be publicly confirmed by any of the parties involved. Rumors that the sale had been postponed then surfaced in the press, which claimed that officials had put plans on hold due to the global banking crisis.

The delay has proven costly: TE’s shares have fallen 16% since the initial Reuters report on 6 March. The reported offer price is a 20% discount to its share price in early March.

Current ownership: The state currently owns 80% of TE, while the remaining 20% is in freefloat.

June is fast approaching: The government wants to raise some USD 2 bn from asset sales by June. Since announcing the privatization program in February, the state has sold its stake in just one company, raising USD 25 mn from its sale of EGX-listed Paint and Chemical Industries (Pachin) to Emirati firm National Paints Holding. Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly said this week that the government is working on a number of transactions and would announce the details soon.

Advisors: Our friends at CI Capital are reportedly managing the transaction alongside Al Ahly Pharos, while NBE is also said to be involved as an advisor.

ALSO IN PRIVATIZATION-

NPH is officially Pachin’s majority shareholder: Some 19.36 mn shares in EGX-listed Paint and Chemical Industries (Pachin) were transferred to Dubai-based National Paints Holding (NPH) yesterday, per anEGX bulletin, completing NPH’s EGP 770.5 mn acquisition of more than 80% of the company.

ACWA Power, Alcazar Energy, Infinity among bidders for Egypt’s Zafarana, Gabal El Zeit wind farms -report

Wind farms attract investor interest: Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power, the UAE’s Alcazar Energy and our friends at local renewables firm Infinity are reportedly among seven companies interested in acquiring Egypt’s two largest wind farms,Asharq Business reports, citing two anonymous sources it says are close to the matter. The government-owned 580-MW Gabal El Zeit and 545-MW Zafarana wind farms were both included in the list of 32 companies and assets earmarked for privatization in February and have attracted significant interest among investors, according to the news outlet, which says the sales are expected to be completed before the end of 2023.

What we don’t know: Who the other four bidders might be or the potential valuation of the two plants. A representative at Infinity declined to comment when Enterprise reached out yesterday.

The Madbouly cabinet has formed a committee to negotiate with potential investors and review offers for Gabal El-Zeit, noting that it’s already received some offers for the wind farm, and is reviewing the expected timeline for the Zafarana wind farm, it said earlier this week.

An attractive buy? Long-term feasibility studies are reportedly already in place, one source told Asharq, saying that a strategic investor in either wind farm “will only replace the turbines.”

ACWA Power, Alcazar, and Infinity are household names in our green energy sector, with all three companies signing multiple MoUs and agreements in the sector in the past year, including for large-scale wind farms:

ACWA signed a MoU in November last year with the NREA and Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company to build a 10-GW wind farm in Egypt and signed a 25-year power purchase agreement alongside Hassan Allam last June to develop a 1.1-GW wind farm in the Gulf of Suez.
Infinity Power – a joint venture between Infinity and long-time partner Masdar – is set to build a 10-GW onshore wind farm in Egypt, alongside Hassan Allam Utilities and Masdar.
Alcazar signed an early agreement to build green fuel facilities in the Ain Sokhna Industrial Zone in August last year. The company also recently signed a partnership agreement with Egypt-based Madkour Group to work together on renewable energy projects in Egypt and Africa.

REMEMBER- We should soon see more movement on the state’s rebooted privatization program. Offers could start rolling in this month for military-owned bottled drinks firm Safi and fuel retailer Wataniya, the cabinet said earlier this week, promising details “soon” on other transactions in the works. The government is hoping to raise USD 2 bn via asset sales by the end of June.

Egypt inflation eases to 30.6% in April

Inflation eased for the first time in 10 months in April thanks to a favorable base effect, the stabilization of the EGP-USD exchange rate, and a slight slowdown in food price growth. Figures released on Wednesday by state statistics agency Capmas showed that annual urban inflation decelerated to 30.6% y-o-y in April from 32.7% the month before. Monthly inflation also slipped to 1.7% in April from 2.7% the month before.

This was expected: The median forecast in a poll of economists by Reuters released on Monday saw inflation coming in at 31.0% in April. Last month’s reading also came in line with estimates by analysts at EFG Hermes Research and CI Capital Research.

Food inflation down from record high: Food and beverage prices — the largest component of the basket of goods and services used to calculate inflation — decelerated to 54.7% y-o-y in April, down from an all-time high of 62.9% in March.

Core inflation also weakened: Core inflation — often seen as a superior measure of price growth because it strips out volatile items such as food and fuel — slipped to 38.6% y-o-y from 39.5% in March, according to central bank data. On a monthly basis, core inflation weakened to 1.7% from 2.4% in March.

A temporary reprieve: Price hikes are expected to accelerate again as soon as this month due to the government’s recent decisions to hike the prices of diesel and subsidized commodities sold to ration card holders as well further currency weakness, EFG Hermes Research’s head of macroeconomic analysis, Mohamed Abu Basha, wrote yesterday. CI Capital is predicting inflation to “resume its upward trajectory over the coming months” to average of 30-32% in 1H 2023 “on the implementation of deeper fiscal reforms” including the diesel price hike and a potential increase in household electricity prices come the new fiscal year.

What happens to the EGP will be key: The widening gap between the value of the EGP on the parallel market and its official rate indicates that the central bank might opt for another devaluation, which would once again ramp up inflationary pressures, Bloomberg reports. The EGP has fallen to a new low against the greenback in the black market in recent days, with reports of the currency switching hands at 40.0 to the USD. The official exchange rate has remained unchanged since mid-March following three devaluations that have caused the EGP to more than halve in value against the greenback.

What does it mean for interest rates? Abu Basha expects April’s cooler inflation reading to give the central bank the chance to keep rates on hold at its next meeting on Thursday, 18 May. By contrast, CI Capital is penciling in 100-bps worth of hikes across the committee’s next two meetings. The CBE has raised interest rates by 1000 bps over the past year after delivering a jumbo 200-bps rate hike in March. CBE Governor Hassan Abdalla last month expressed doubts on the effectiveness of monetary policy to curb inflation, and said that policymakers need to be “very careful” about tightening policy further.

** We’ll be out with our customary interest rate poll on Sunday ahead of Thursday’s central bank meeting.

EBRD to invest in RMBV’s USD 300 mn North Africa fund

EBRD commits USD 60 mn to RMBV's third fund: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will invest USD 60 mn in RMBV's third North African fund, according to its website. The EBRD will sign off on the investment on 29 November.

About the fund: The USD 300 mn fund will deploy funds in mid-cap companies mostly in Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia, with the aim of achieving long-term capital growth. The fund has reportedly been in the works since June 2020.

RMBV has a big focus on Egypt: The firm’s portfolio includes Cleopatra Hospitals Group, MaxAB, and Taaleem, according to its website. IDH, CIRA Education, and Spinneys Egypt are among the companies it has exited. The firm is led by Ahmed Badreldin, the former head of Middle East and North Africa of collapsed private equity firm Abraaj.

EBRD + RMBV know each other well: The EBRD invested in the firm’s second fund, committing USD 25 mn back in 2014.

Corrected on 11 May 2023: The EBRD had invested in RMBV's USD 300 mn North Africa fund and not Riyada Managers, as a previous version of this story had stated.

19 Egyptian ministries are moving to new capital next week

Another 19 government ministries and agencies will move to the new administrative capital next week, cabinet said yesterday following its weekly meeting. Fourteen government ministries and agencies have already made the move, the statement says.

GOLD CUSTOMS EXEMPTIONS GREENLIT-

Ministers approved a draft decision that allows Egyptians living abroad to import gold to Egypt without paying customs duties for a six-month period, according to a separate statement. The decision, published in the Official Gazette yesterday, also included jewelry, even that which includes precious stones, with the exception of pearls — real and fake — and gemstones. Supply Minister Ali El Moselhy first proposed the move in a bid to help stabilize the gold market, where prices have more than doubled over the past year.

How much of a difference is this expected to make? Gold prices are expected to drop by EGP 50-100 per gram on the back of the decision, Amir Rizk, member of the Gold Division at the Chamber of Commerce, told Yahduth Fi Masr last night (watch, runtime: 6:38).

Putting that figure in context: Since the start of the year, the price of 21-carat gold has soared more than 50% from EGP 1,675 per gram to EGP 2,560 as of yesterday.

ALSO APPROVED-

Takaful and Karama social support program: The cabinet approved the USD 500 mn in additional financing from the World Bank to extend the Takaful and Karama program that was agreed in December;
Dual taxation agreement with Qatar: The cabinet approved the agreement signed with Qatar in February to scrap double taxation and crack down on tax evasion;
The African Continental Freetrade Area (AfCFTA): The cabinet approved a presidential decision to publish the list of customs breaks in the AfCFTA, which aims to boost trade and investment across the continent;
African Space Agency: The cabinet approved the African Union and the Higher Education Ministry’s agreement to establish the headquarters of the African Space Agency in Egypt.

Sudan-RSF close to truce agreement -Reuters. PLUS: Gaza violence intensifies following Israeli airstrikes

There are reports that a proper ceasefire agreement for Sudan could be close:Negotiations between the Sudanese army and the rival paramilitary group the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are bearing fruit and a ceasefire agreement is expected to be signed soon, two sources close to the talks told Reuters. Representatives of the two sides have been in talks in Jeddah since Saturday under a Saudi-US mediation initiative.

The dialogue hasn’t stopped the fighting: Reports yesterday indicated that fighting was still taking place in multiple areas of the Sudanese capital, with gunfire and airstrikes by the Sudanese army taking place through the day yesterday. The two sides have agreed to multiple ceasefires over the course of the nearly-month-long war, none of which have succeeded in bringing an end to the fighting on the ground.

Washington has hope: US officials at the talks are "cautiously optimistic" that the two sides will agree to a truce, US Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland said yesterday, according to Reuters.

A regional summit is being planned: Sudan’s neighbors are preparing to hold a summit to discuss how to restore peace and stability in the country, South Sudan's Presidential Advisor on Security Affairs Tut Gatluak told Al Shorouk. Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry traveled to Chad and South Sudan this week to discuss peace efforts with the countries’ leaders.

Refugee count: As of Tuesday, 113k people — 103.6k Sudanese, 9.4k foreigners — had fled the country, according to UN data. Some 7.8k Egyptians have so far made it home from Sudan, cabinet said yesterday.

WAR TO SOUTH, WAR TO THE NORTH-

Violence in Gaza intensified yesterday as Palestinian militants responded to Israeli airstrikes by firing rockets across the border, according to the Associated Press. The fighting was triggered by the Israeli military bombing targets in Gaza on Tuesday, assassinating three senior commanders of Islamic Jihad and killing at least 10 civilians. Twenty-three Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s bombing campaign, triggering condemnation from the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Egypt is trying to mediate an end to the fighting: Egypt, usually the chief mediator between the Palestinians and Israelis during conflict, is in talks with both sides to negotiate an end to the fighting. Extra News claimed that Cairo had succeeded in brokering a ceasefire (watch, runtime: 0:13) only for fighting to continue into the night.

Nine Egyptian firms make FT list of Africa’s fastest-growing companies

Nine Egyptian companies have been named on the Financial Times’ 2023 list of Africa's Fastest Growing Companies. Compiled by the newspaper in partnership with data provider Statista, the 100-strong list spotlights those African companies that it says saw the highest compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in revenues between 2018 and 2021, marking their “corporate dynamism” at the height of covid.

Representing Egypt:

#11- Globe Medex
#19- KarmSolar
#44- Suez Canal Bank
#46- CIRA Education
#62- Reefy
#68- MNT-Halan
#92- El Fayrouz Company For Converting And Cutting Paper
#93- EFG Hermes Holding
#97- Arab Contractors.

Is that all, FT? The list is far from comprehensive, featuring only companies that either applied or were invited to participate by Statista, as was the case with the inaugural list released by the FT last year. Dominating the list are South Africa with 33 companies and Nigeria with 27 firms.

At the Arab Federation of Capital Markets’ 2022 awards ceremony:

Our friends at EFG Hermes were named best broker in Egypt and best broker in Dubai, according to a statement (pdf).
The best investment bank award went to Al Ahly Pharos, it said on LinkedIn.

Egyptian photojournalist wins Pulitzer: PhotojournalistNariman Ayman El Mofty was among a number of AP journalists who won the Breaking News Photography category in the 2023 Pulitzer Prizes for their coverage of the first weeks of the war on Ukraine. The album of winning images can be viewed here, though some are not for the faint of heart.

The budget and the National Dialogue continue to dominate Egypt’s talk shows

The economy continued to top talk show coverage: The conversation hasn’t shifted away from government finances and the economy since we got our first glance at the new budget earlier this week.

More concerns over our debt levels: Yahduth Fi Masr talked to House Planning and Budget Committee secretary-general Abdel Moneim Imam, who voiced concern about the country’s rising debt pile. “The one thing that increased most is the debt,” he said, noting that debt more than tripled between 2015-2016 and 2021-2022 (watch, runtime: 7:18).

The National Dialogue is still getting a lot of attention by state media: Al Hayal Al Youm (watch, runtime: 1:26) focused on dialogue’s general coordinator, Diaa Rashwan’s latest statements, which gave us more insight into how the dialogue will work — there will be no voting. Sayed Abdel Aal, chairman of the leftist National Progressive Unionist Party, joined Al Youm (watch, runtime: 8:12) to talk all things National Dialogue, saying that the aim of the dialogue is for all the involved parties to reach an agreement for a vision towards the new Egypt.

REMEMBER- The dialogue will kick off on Sunday, with three weekly meetings scheduled for the foreseeable future.

Egypt’s economic crisis and the Cleopatra controversy are leading the international headlines

It’s a mixed morning in the foreign press: The economy is still getting inch, this time from theGuardian, which is out with a piece on the cost of living crisis, and Bloomberg, which covers the government’s decision this week to reduce subsidized food allocations for ration-card holders.

The debate over Queen Cleopatra’s race is still making noise:The New York Times, the Financial Times, CBS, and Variety are all commenting on the controversy surrounding Netflix’s portrayal of Cleopatra in its new docuseries.

Also in the headlines: The Economist Intelligence Unit says that the conflict in Sudan could spell trouble for our GERD strategy and the Times comments on the start of the National Dialogue.

Telecom Egypt completes work on 2Africa mega cable

INFRASTRUCTURE-

The local stretch of the 2Africa subsea cable is complete: Telecom Egypt (TE) has completed the second landing of the 2Africa subsea cable in Port Said, according to a pressrelease(pdf). The national telecoms operator made the cable’s first landing in Ras Ghareb in November last year, after completing the stretch that runs from Suez to Ras Ghareb a month earlier, according to the release.

2Africa: The 45k-km cable is being laid by a consortium of global telecom companies and will be the longest in the world once complete, linking 46 locations across Africa, Europe and Asia. The project will significantly upgrade Africa’s broadband and mobile connectivity when it is finished in 2024.

FROM THE HOUSE-

Loan for high-speed rail approved: MPs approved a loan agreement from a consortium of unnamed international banks to fund the 660-km first phase of the planned high-speed rail network. Siemens Mobility, Orascom Construction and Arab Contractors are the contractors, while French construction firm NGE and its subsidiary TSO have been chosen to build half of the first phase, which will link Ain Sokhna to Marsa Matrouh. Al Masry Al Youm reports that the facility is worth some USD 2 bn.

US inflation slows to lowest level since April 2021

Fed has breathing room as US inflation continues to ease: US inflation slowed to its lowest level in two years on the back of the Federal Reserve’s aggressive interest rate hikes, giving the central bank more room to pause the tightening cycle. The consumer price index fell to 4.9% last month, its lowest level since April 2021, from 5% in March, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics figures (pdf) released yesterday. Core inflation, which has been stickier in recent months, also eased slightly during the month.

An end of the Fed’s tightening cycle? Fed Chairman Jerome Powell has already hinted that the Fed will cool it with the back-to-back rate hikes after the destabilizing impact of sharply higher rates was brought into view in March with a liquidity crisis among regional lenders. The central bank has over the past year raised the fed funds rate to its highest level since 2007 in efforts to tame soaring inflation and bring it back down to its 2% target.

EGX30	17,495	+1.0% (YTD: +19.8%)
USD (CBE)	Buy 30.84	Sell 30.96
USD at CIB	Buy 30.85	Sell 30.95
Interest rates CBE	18.25% deposit	19.25% lending
Tadawul	11,293	-0.1% (YTD: +7.8%)
ADX	9,724	+0.4% (YTD: -4.8%)
DFM	3,573	+0.1% (YTD: +7.1%)
S&P 500	4,138	+0.5% (YTD: +7.8%)
FTSE 100	7,741	-0.3% (YTD: +3.9%)
Euro Stoxx 50	4,307	-0.4% (YTD: +13.5%)
Brent crude	USD 76.63	-1.1%
Natural gas (Nymex)	USD 2.18	-3.8%
Gold	USD 2,038.00	-0.2%
BTC	USD 27,868	+0.8% (YTD: +68.7%)

THE CLOSING BELL-

The EGX30 rose 1.0% at yesterday’s close on turnover of EGP 2.83 bn (56% above the trailing 90-day average). Regional investors were net buyers. The index is up 19.8% YTD.

In the green: Taleem (+11.4%), Ibnsina Pharma (+7.5%) and Cleopatra Hospitals (+4.2%).

In the red: Mopco (-6.0%), ADIB (-1.2%) and Juhayna (-0.7%).

My Morning Routine: Naela El Attar, golf department head at the Allegria Golf Club

Naela El Attar, golf department head at the Allegria Golf Club in SODIC’s Club S: Each week, My Morning Routine looks at how a successful member of the community starts their day — and then throws in a couple of random business questions just for fun. Speaking to us this week is Naela El Attar (LinkedIn). Edited excerpts from our conversation:

My name is Naela El Attar, and I describe myself as a very passionate, competitive person. I enjoy nature and animals very much; these two things have always been a big part of who I am. I also consider myself to be an extremely fortunate person. I found my passion at a young age, and was lucky enough to have the support of my parents, coaches, and the community around me to pursue my dream.

I am the general manager of the Allegria Golf Club, where I am responsible for all facility operations. I oversee a staff of about 75 people, including four managers and employees involved in agronomy and golf operations. I also manage and coordinate weekly and monthly activities — seeing to golf lessons, running a huge golf technology academy, directing weekly tournaments and events, and monitoring daily operations and business as usual. Throughout the day, I tend to our members and golfer guests, seeing to their requests and inquiries. A few days a week, I do course checks: assessing the condition, maintenance, and irrigation of our 158-acre golf course.

The biggest part of my job is communicating to the owners what goes on in the golf industry because most of them are not golf professionals. Their expertise pertains to real estate rather than golf specifically, so they need to have someone on board who understands capital planning. I develop budgets, reports, estimates of revenues and expenses, and capital plans with the owners.

I was introduced to golf when I was just four and a half years old by my dad. I fell in love with the game instantly and knew that I wanted to spend every day on the golf course. I grew up playing junior tournaments at the historic Alexandria Sporting Club, which is more than 100 years old. By six or seven, I knew I wanted to be a golf professional, even though I wasn’t really sure what that entailed. What drew me in was the open space of greenery and the old trees. I was fascinated by the vegetation and the habitat it created for different kinds of birds, lizards, chameleons, and other animals. Nature is a big part of the game.

I'm usually up by 4:35 am in the summer. It's just my biological clock; it gets me up early, even when I try to stay in bed and rest on my days off. In the cold weather, I might try to sleep in, but I’m usually up by 6:00 AM. So I have a pretty early morning routine, which makes me go to bed really early.

I try to be consistent with my morning workout — though to be honest, that doesn’t always work out. I usually do a morning run. My running buddy is my hunting dog — a Hungarian Vizsla. He requires a lot of exercise, so he pushes me to do it. When I'm about to miss a run, he kisses my cheek and is like, “No way. We're gonna go running.” And in summer, I do a lot of lap swimming. I also have a few dumbbells and bands and stuff. So I work out for half an hour / an hour at home because I'm very short on time in the morning. On my days off, I get to read a little bit of Enterprise, which I got into recently.

I learned the hard way that you have to prioritize your body or else you crash. I'm very competitive, like I said, so I can be dragged into working so many hours, and about a year ago I got burnt out. I have to say it's my weak point, and that's what a lot of my family and friends point out.

My day off is Tuesday to balance things out. I work on the weekends, which is our busiest time, so to find balance I sometimes invite my parents to have lunch on Fridays. I think I play golf way less than anyone who doesn't work in golf. It's funny how I'm always on the golf course, but I don't have enough time to play.

I love books on golf or sports psychology. Books of this kind explain the sport and how to endure, be confident, and deal with imperfections — stuff you can apply to real life. Sometimes we tend to think we are dealt some bad cards or our minds drift away to negative thoughts, but sports teach you that you're not going to get the outcome you want if you hold onto that negative outlook. One of the best sports psychologists in golf is called Bob Rotella. And even though his books really revolve around golf, I think anyone would benefit from reading his work, which offers a fun way of explaining how to better yourself without the pressure of reading a psychology book.

The best advice I’ve been given is putting 100% in whatever you choose to do to reach your potential. If I'm passionate about something, it’ll take all of me and that's just how it is. You can be given any advice, but you really end up following the example of those you grow up around. Like I said, I'm so fortunate to have had parents and grandparents who are very passionate and hardworking. Instead of just advising me, they led by example.

CALENDAR

APRIL

Late April – 15 May: 1Q2023 earnings season.

MAY

7-11 May (Sunday-Thursday): First round of applications for sixth phase of export subsidy program.

9-11 May (Tuesday-Thursday): First edition of the Arab Actuarial Conference, Cairo.

12-15 May (Friday-Monday): Egypt Fashion Week.

13 May (Saturday): Transport Ministry’s Maritime Transport Sector is hosting its Excellence and Creativity conference in Alexandria.

14 May (Sunday): First National Dialogue session.

14 May (Sunday): Expat car import scheme ends.

14 May (Sunday): EgyptAir to launch a new route to Dhaka, Bangladesh.

14 May (Sunday) Egytrans’ shareholders to vote on NOSCO acquisition.

15 May (Monday): Enterprise Exports & FDI Forum, Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at Nile Plaza.

16 May (Tuesday): National Dialogue session.

16-18 May (Tuesday-Thursday): Egypt will host its first conferenceon cybersecurity and defense intelligence systems (CDIS-Egypt).

17-31 May (Wednesday - Wednesday): Second round of applications for sixth phase of export subsidy program.

18 May (Thursday): National Dialogue session.

18 May (Thursday): Central Bank of Egypt’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting.

19 May (Friday): Arab League summit, Riyadh.

19-21 May (Friday-Sunday): G7 summit, Hiroshima, Japan.

20-21 May (Saturday-Sunday): eGlob Expo, St. Regis Almasa Hotel, Cairo.

21 May (Sunday): Senate to reconvene.

22-26 May (Monday-Friday): Egypt will host the African Development Bank (AfDB) annual meetings in Sharm El Sheikh.

28 May (Sunday): House to reconvene.

29 May (Monday): IEF-IGU Ministerial Gas Forum, Cairo.

30 May (Tuesday): Listed companies have until this date to report and publish their 1Q results.

JUNE

June: Indian representatives to discuss prospect investments in the Suez Canal.

7-10 (Wednesday-Saturday): The second edition of Africa Health Excon.

10 June (Saturday): Thanaweya Amma examinations begin.

12 June - 15 July (Monday-Saturday): Thanaweya Amma exams.

13-14 June (Tuesday-Wednesday): Federal Reserve interest rate meeting.

15 June (Thursday): Deadline for bids in EGPC’s mature oil fields tender.

19-20 June (Monday-Tuesday): The forum for insolvency reforms and corporate restructuring in the Middle East and North Africa.

19-21 June (Monday-Wednesday): Egypt Infrastructure and Water Expo debuts at the Egypt International Exhibition Center.

22 June (Thursday): Central Bank of Egypt’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting.

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

30 June (Friday): June 30 Revolution Day.

30 June (Friday): Egypt to exit Grains Trade Convention.

JULY

1 July: House of Representatives deadline to approve the FY 2023-2024 budget.

1 July: GAFI to launch the country’s first integrated electronic platform to facilitate setting up a business.

5 - 6 July (Monday - Tuesday): Gov’t to pay out subsidies to first wave of applicants under its sixth export subsidy program.

18 July (Tuesday): Islamic New Year.

19 - 20 July (Wednesday - Thursday): Gov’t to pay out subsidies to second wave of applicants under its sixth export subsidy program.

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

23 July (Sunday): Revolution Day.

25-26 July (Tuesday-Wednesday): Federal Reserve interest rate meeting.

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

Late July-14 August: 2Q2023 earnings season.

AUGUST

August: Hassan Allam Utilities + Agility to open Yanmu East logistics park.

2 - 3 August (Wednesday - Thursday): Gov’t to pay out subsidies to second wave of applicants under its sixth export subsidy program.

3 August (Thursday): Central Bank of Egypt’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting.

10 August (Thursday): Shalateen Mineral Resources gold mining tender closes.

22-24 August (Tuesday-Thursday): BRICS summit, Johannesburg, South Africa.

SEPTEMBER

September: Sustainable Debt Coalition Initiative agreed at COP27 to launch.

9-10 September (Saturday-Sunday): G20 summit, New Delhi, India.

15 September (Friday): IMF to review USD 3 bn program.

19-20 September (Tuesday-Wednesday): Federal Reserve interest rate meeting.

21 September (Thursday): Central Bank of Egypt’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting.

21-23 September (Thursday-Saturday): Narrative PR Summit, Somabay.

25 September (Monday): Nasdaq deadline for Swvl Holdings Corp to increase its market value of publicly held shares to a minimum of USD 15 mn.

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

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

OCTOBER

October: Deadline for ins. providers to link their databases with the FRA.

2-5 October (Monday-Thursday): ADIPEC 2023, Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center.

6 October (Friday): Armed Forces Day.

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

Late October-14 November: 3Q2023 earnings season.

26 October (Thursday): Daylight saving time ends.

31 October - 1 November (Tuesday-Wednesday): Federal Reserve interest rate meeting.

NOVEMBER

November: Cairo to hostIntra-African Trade Fair.

2 November (Thursday): Central Bank of Egypt’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting.

15-24 November (Wednesday-Friday): Cairo International Film Festival, Cairo.

DECEMBER

12-13 December (Tuesday-Wednesday): Federal Reserve interest rate meeting.

21 December (Thursday): Central Bank of Egypt’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting.

EVENTS WITH NO SET DATE

2023: The inauguration of the Grand Egyptian Museum.

2023: Egypt will host the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank’s Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors in 2023.

Summer 2023: EGX to launch a shariah-compliant index.

1H 2023: GAFI roadshow set to launch to drum up foreign investment for golden licenses

1H 2023: Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank intends to launch a digital consumer finance company

2H 2023: Egyptian government expected to sign agreements with a consultant for the EuroAfrica electricity interconnector.

2H 2023: President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expected to hold a summit.

4Q 2023: EGX to launch its new futures exchange.

End of 2023: A Developments’ first phase of the Lazoghly development completed.

November 2024: Egypt to host the 12th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF12).

2Q 2025: Safaga Terminal 2 to initiate operations.

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