{"id":585085,"date":"2023-04-10T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-04-10T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2023\/04\/10\/this-evening-inflation-accelerates-again-in-march-our-eid-holiday-schedule-is-here\/"},"modified":"2023-04-10T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-04-10T00:00:00","slug":"this-evening-inflation-accelerates-again-in-march-our-eid-holiday-schedule-is-here","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2023\/04\/10\/this-evening-inflation-accelerates-again-in-march-our-eid-holiday-schedule-is-here\/","title":{"rendered":"THIS EVENING: Inflation accelerates again in March + Our Eid holiday schedule is here"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.<\/span> It\u2019s not exactly a \u201cRamadan slowdown\u201d type of news day, but it\u2019s not exactly the absolute avalanche we\u2019ve been seeing over the past couple of weeks. But more importantly\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>We have our Eid holiday schedule confirmed:<\/span> Public sector workers will be off<\/span> from Thursday, 20 April until Tuesday, 25 April in observance of Sinai Liberation Day and Eid El Fitr, Cabinet said in a <\/span>statement<\/a><\/span>. Expect the central bank and the EGX to follow up with their own announcements in the coming days. <\/span><\/p>\n

The EGX will be closed this coming Sunday and Monday, 16-17 April<\/span> in observance of Coptic Easter and Sham El Nessim, the<\/span> bourse confirmed in a <\/span>news bulletin<\/a><\/span> today.
<\/span><\/p>\n

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

<\/span>Inflation accelerated in March to a near all-time high<\/span>, on the back of the<\/span> weakening EGP, the FX shortage, and increased demand in the lead-up to Ramadan. Annual urban inflation hit 32.7% in March, up from 31.9% the <\/span>month before<\/a><\/span>, according to figures from state census bureau CAPMAS<\/span>. Inflation is now at its highest since July 2017, when it was running at almost 33%. <\/span><\/p>\n

THE BIG STORIES ABROAD-<\/span><\/p>\n

#1- The global business press is beaming messages of hope for the global economy:<\/span> The global economy may avoid a slump this year, the <\/span>Financial Times<\/a><\/span> reports, citing the <\/span>Brookings-FT tracking index<\/a><\/span>. The biannual index shows that economic conditions are close to historic averages, both in advanced economies and EMs. The US, Eurozone, China, India, and the UK are all <\/span>growing faster<\/span> than was predicted last year, while major emerging market economies are showing resilience thanks to improvements in policy framework and inherent dynamism. This comes despite IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva\u2019s <\/span>statement<\/a><\/span> earlier this week that the global economy is likely to see its weakest growth since 1990 this year.<\/span><\/p>\n

If anything, the recent drop in US Treasury yields may have just been a false alarm of<\/span> impending recession:<\/span> Two-year US Treasury yields saw a large percentage-point slide in March following the banking sector turmoil, a drop that traders took to mean a deep recession was on its way, <\/span>Bloomberg<\/a><\/span>reports. However, the absence of similar volatility in fixed-income assets and credit is a sign that an impending recession might just be a figment of bearish speculators\u2019 imaginations. \u201cEach day that there isn\u2019t a banking crisis is another day indicating that the current pricing [of treasuries] doesn\u2019t make sense, but it\u2019s going to take a while,\u201d Unlimited Funds CIO Bob Elliott told Bloomberg.<\/span><\/p>\n

#2- The American-Chinese show of strength continues: <\/span>A US guided missile destroyer<\/span> passed through waters in the South China Sea \u2014 where China claims maritime ownership \u2014 without Beijing\u2019s permission. <\/span>China has denounced the move, stating that it is an infringement of its sovereignty and security. The move is escalating tensions between the US and China, which carried out its own large-scale military air and naval maneuvers, sealing off Taiwan by blocking sea and air traffic, following Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen's trip to the US last week. The story is getting coverage in the international press: <\/span>Reuters<\/a><\/span> | <\/span>Bloomberg<\/a><\/span> | <\/span>AP<\/a><\/span>. <\/span><\/p>\n

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