{"id":551855,"date":"2022-07-26T14:36:31","date_gmt":"2022-07-26T14:36:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2022\/07\/26\/tonight-ofh-agrees-to-fully-exit-beltone-eu-to-cut-gas-consumption-by-15-also-fra-capital-markets-strategy-will-undergo-public-hearings\/"},"modified":"2022-07-26T14:36:31","modified_gmt":"2022-07-26T14:36:31","slug":"tonight-ofh-agrees-to-fully-exit-beltone-eu-to-cut-gas-consumption-by-15-also-fra-capital-markets-strategy-will-undergo-public-hearings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2022\/07\/26\/tonight-ofh-agrees-to-fully-exit-beltone-eu-to-cut-gas-consumption-by-15-also-fra-capital-markets-strategy-will-undergo-public-hearings\/","title":{"rendered":"TONIGHT: OFH agrees to fully exit Beltone + EU to cut gas consumption by 15%. ALSO- FRA capital markets strategy will undergo public hearings."},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s quite a hump day, ladies and gentlemen. <\/strong>We have big news on the capital market front, while Europe is taking a big decision to wean itself off of Russian energy. Macro will continue to guide the conversation globally, with the IMF cutting its growth outlook and the Fed meeting commences. It looks like a slog to the finish line, folks.<\/p>\n

THE BIG STORY TODAY<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/a> OFH agrees to sell its entire stake in Beltone: <\/strong>Orascom Financial Holding\u2019s (OFH) board of directors issued a decision today to sell the entirety of its 56% stake in Beltone Financial to Chimera Investments in response to Chimera\u2019s mandatory tender offer for up to 90% of Beltone, OFH said in a disclosure to the bourse (pdf)<\/a>. The order to sell its entire stake comes after a BoD meeting yesterday approving Chimera\u2019s bid, in which the Abu Dhabi-based investment firm is offering EGP 1.485 per share in Beltone. OFH\u2019s decision means Chimera\u2019s acquisition bid will now automatically go through after passing the 51% minimum threshold, with the total stake Chimera will acquire depending on the outcome of its mandatory tender offer.<\/p>\n

Beltone shares fell<\/strong> 1.8% to EGP 1.67 at the close of trading today.<\/p>\n

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/a> EU approves emergency plan to limit gas demand as Russia reduces supplies further: <\/strong>As gas shortages loom in the continent, European Union countries have approved<\/a> a proposal to cut gas use by as much as 15% over a period from August of this year to March 2023. The meeting comes a day after Russian gas giant Gazprom said further cut gas flows<\/a> through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline this week to just 20% of capacity, piling pressure on Germany, which was already struggling to secure enough gas to last it through the winter. While Gazprom blamed the shortage on an issue with another turbine, EU energy policy chief Kadri Simson went on record saying that the move is politically motivated. \u201cWe know that there is no technical reason to do so,\u201d she said, according to Reuters<\/a>.<\/p>\n

HAPPENING NOW-<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/a> The IMF has revised downwards its forecast for global GDP growth in 2022 in its updated<\/strong> World Economic Outlook<\/strong>, which it released just minutes before we hit \u201csend\u201d on this afternoon\u2019s edition. The fund now expects growth to slow to 3.2% by the end of the year \u2014 0.4 percentage points lower than what it had penciled in for the year in its April edition of the report \u2014 on the back of the war in Ukraine, rising inflation, and a \u201cworse-than-expected slowdown in China.\u201d There are \u201coverwhelming\u201d downside risks to the outlook, including Europe being entirely cut off from Russian gas supplies, more stubborn inflation, and tighter monetary policy, which could come together to push the US and eurozone area to near-zero growth, said IMF Chief Economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas in a press briefing. Look for details on what this means for us here tomorrow. <\/strong><\/p>\n

The US Federal Reserve also just kicked off the first of its two-day Federal Open Market<\/strong> Committee<\/strong> meeting to review interest rates. The general consensus is that the Fed will decide on a second consecutive 75 bps rate hike to rein in inflation.<\/p>\n

^^We\u2019ll have more<\/strong> on these stories and others in tomorrow\u2019s EnterpriseAM<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

** CATCH UP QUICK<\/strong> on the top stories from today\u2019s EnterpriseAM<\/strong>:<\/p>\n