{"id":579030,"date":"2023-01-23T03:58:51","date_gmt":"2023-01-23T03:58:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2023\/01\/23\/this-morning-yesterday-was-a-good-one-for-the-egx\/"},"modified":"2023-01-23T03:58:51","modified_gmt":"2023-01-23T03:58:51","slug":"this-morning-yesterday-was-a-good-one-for-the-egx","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2023\/01\/23\/this-morning-yesterday-was-a-good-one-for-the-egx\/","title":{"rendered":"THIS MORNING: Yesterday was a good one for the EGX."},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning, wonderful people, and a very happy Monday. <\/strong>If you\u2019re among our Egypt-based readers, you need only get through today and you\u2019ll officially be halfway through this shorter week.<\/p>\n

THE BIG STORY here at home:<\/strong> It\u2019s all tourism <\/strong>as Travco Group says it will spend some EGP 7 bn to up its hotel capacity 13%. That will be music to the ears of Tourism Minister Ahmed Issa, who yesterday told the Senate that the private sector needs to lead the way on some USD 30 bn of investments to get annual visitor arrival numbers up to 30 mn by 2028.<\/p>\n

Remember: Tourism isn\u2019t just a volume game. <\/strong>As the leaders of industry players including Travco<\/a> and Somabay<\/a> have told us before, it\u2019s also about the average spend per tourist. We need to be targeting high-spenders and ramping up the quality of our overall tourism offering, from the airport experience (including dutyfree shopping), to the experiences we sell visitors, to the roads those visitors travel down to get to those experiences.<\/p>\n

Investor appetite for EGX continues to grow post-float of the EGP: <\/strong>Turnover was up by more than a quarter on the 90-day average in the benchmark EGX 30 yesterday, which closed up 0.3%. The index has gained 10.4% YTD. The EGP was effectively unchanged yesterday at<\/strong> 29.89<\/strong>, according to the official central bank exchange rate. The EGP started the year at 24.70 to the greenback.<\/p>\n

PSA- CBE confirms the long weekend: <\/strong>Banks will be off this Thursday in observance of Police Day and the 25 January revolution, the Central Bank of Egypt said in a statement yesterday. Look for a similar announcement from the EGX later in the week.<\/p>\n

WHAT\u2019S HAPPENING TODAY- <\/strong><\/p>\n

Anybody want to offer private lessons for tutors on taxation? <\/strong>The Senate is set to discuss the possibility of imposing a 10% income tax on teachers who provide private tutoring, with the proceeds to be spent on improving public schools. Education Minister Reda Hegazy will also deliver a statement on education reform.<\/p>\n

The national handball team faces Denmark tonight at 9:30pm CLT <\/strong>for its last group-stage game of the International Handball Federation\u2019s 2023 World Championship. Whatever happens, we\u2019re already through to the quarter-finals.<\/p>\n

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

El Sisi heads to India:<\/strong> President Abdel Fattah El Sisi will lead a delegation including ministers and other officials on a three-day visit<\/a> from Tuesday, 24 January to Thursday, 26 January at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. El Sisi will be honored as \u201cchief guest\u201d at celebrations to mark the 74th anniversary of Indian independence.<\/p>\n

Moves to come on mortgages + sale of real estate to folks living abroad? <\/strong>The central bank, the Financial Regulatory Authority, and the government\u2019s Social Housing Fund<\/a> have been tasked with putting together a plan to support real estate finance, as well as boost real estate sales to folks living abroad in a bid to bring FX inflows to the sector, according to a cabinet statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In context: <\/strong>The central bank\u2019s subsidized mortgage scheme for middle-income earners was cut back in November<\/a>, in tandem with the scheme\u2019s move to the Housing Ministry as requested by the IMF. Meanwhile, the government has been exploring ways to sell land plots in return for hard currency<\/a>, one of several measures meant to give a boost to the nation\u2019s stock of foreign exchange.<\/p>\n

Some government employees have been given the keys to their apartments in the <\/strong>new administrative capital<\/strong>, Youm7<\/a> reports, citing unnamed sources it says are in the know. Some 30k civil servants are set to move to their new offices in the new administrative capital<\/a> by mid-March.<\/p>\n

WATCH THIS SPACE- The Supply Ministry is set to finalize the \u201cfair prices\u201d of a <\/strong>number of food and consumer commodities this month<\/strong>, Al Mal<\/a> reports, adding that it is \u201cclose to putting the finishing touches\u201d to the indicative price list.<\/p>\n

REFRESHER-<\/strong> The Supply Ministry was reportedly set to announce the price list<\/a> at the end of December after setting up<\/a> a committee to advise on fair prices to clamp down on price gouging amid soaring inflation.<\/p>\n

COME TO OUR NEXT ENTERPRISE FORUM- <\/strong><\/p>\n

enterprise<\/p>\n

We\u2019re excited to unveil our next C-level event: The Enterprise FDI + Exports Forum,<\/strong> where we will take a deep dive into two of the most critical topics affecting our community.<\/p>\n

Exports and foreign direct investment (FDI) have never been more important to our economy<\/strong> \u2014 or our businesses \u2014 than in the wake of the float of the EGP. We think we have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to build an export-led economy<\/a> that makes us a magnet for FDI and all the benefits that will come with it for our nation.<\/p>\n

The Enterprise FDI + Exports Forum asks a simple question: Where do we go from here? <\/strong><\/p>\n

The Enterprise FDI + Exports Forum is the latest in our series of must-attend, invitation-only gatherings for C-suite-level business leaders<\/strong>, where they can talk openly and honestly about important issues in key parts of the economy. The gathering, which will take place in May 2023, will focus on how to start making moves across continents, including:<\/p>\n