{"id":597814,"date":"2019-05-06T04:16:48","date_gmt":"2019-05-06T04:16:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2019\/05\/06\/what-were-tracking-on-06-may-2019\/"},"modified":"2019-05-06T04:16:48","modified_gmt":"2019-05-06T04:16:48","slug":"what-were-tracking-on-06-may-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2019\/05\/06\/what-were-tracking-on-06-may-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"What we\u2019re tracking on 06 May 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s a reasonably quiet news morning in Egypt as we begin the Holy Month<\/b>, but what news there is is big: Thailand has a new king, and he\u2019d like USD 1 bn from Egypt to mark the occasion. And non-oil business activity expanded last month, snapping an eight-month losing streak.<\/p>\n

<\/a> IMF delegation in Egypt to hold first meeting with gov\u2019t today as it completes final review: <\/b>An International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation in town to conduct the final review of Egypt\u2019s economic reform program will hold today its first meeting with the government, a senior official told Enterprise. The delegation will complete its review in two weeks after a series of sit-downs with the authorities focused in part on forthcoming amendments to the Investment Act<\/a> and other measures to attract investment.<\/p>\n

Also on the agenda: Incentives to encourage the growth of SMEs.<\/b> The government\u2019s drive to convince informal businesses to go legit, the CBE\u2019s monetary policy stance, coming fuel subsidy cuts and the introduction of a new automatic fuel pricing mechanism<\/a> to more oil products will also be discussed. This review will determine if we will receive by early July the sixth and final USD 2 bn tranche<\/b> of the USD 12 bn facility.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re keeping our eyes peeled for monthly inflation figures<\/b>, which are due out by the end of the week. Annual headline urban inflation eased slightly in March<\/a> to 14.2%, down from 14.4% the previous month.<\/p>\n

Google Assistant now understands (but doesn\u2019t quite speak) Masry: <\/b>Google has launched its Android- and iOS-compatible Google Assistant in Egypt and KSA \u2014 and says it can understand both colloquial dialects and respond in standard Arabic, according to an emailed press release (pdf)<\/a>. Armed with machine learning, the app will be \u201cwill only get better with time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hani Shukrallah has died at age 69.<\/b> An all-round good human being with a contagious smile, Hani was a veteran journalist, commentator and old-fashioned lefty who counted among his many accomplishments founding Ahram Online, which he led from 2010-2012 after having earlier edited Ahram Weekly. His family will hold an aza at Omar Makram Mosque in Tahrir Square on Thursday. Ahram Online<\/a> has the official obituary.<\/p>\n

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Egyptian football fans <\/b>\u2764\ufe0f<\/b>Gianni Infantino:<\/b> FIFA President Gianni Infantino\u2019s plan to expand the Qatar 2022 World Cup to 48 teams could be Egyptians\u2019 only hope of being able to travel to the tournament. The plan would require at least two more stadiums to accommodate the expanded roster, which Qatar is unable to do. Saudi Arabia has now thrown its hat into the ring as a potential co-host \u2014 but will Qatar play ball? The Financial Times<\/a> has more.<\/p>\n

On a related note: We\u2019re now officially \u201cenemies\u201d:<\/b> No visas will be granted to so-called \u201cenemies\u201d of Qatar, thesecretary-general of the statelet\u2019s tourism council said, according to Reuters<\/a>. \u201cThe visa will not be open for our enemies,\u201d Akbar Al Baker said, singling out Egypt during an event designed to promote Qatar as a tourist destination. A Qatari government spokesman later walked back Al Baker\u2019s remarks, saying they \u201cdo not reflect the state\u2019s official policy for issuing visas and that it welcomes \u2018all people of the world\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jumia struggles to navigate Africa\u2019s rough landscape: <\/b>Jumia, which is on an investment spree to expand in Africa, is struggling with customer skepticism of online shopping, says the Financial Times<\/a>. Poor road infrastructure, traffic, and logistics challenges are also issues of major concern to the USD 1.1 bn firm, which has recently became<\/a> the first Africa-focused tech company to list on a major stock exchange when it went public in New York.<\/p>\n

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Global business headlines <\/b>and other news worth knowing this morning:<\/p>\n