{"id":611751,"date":"2023-12-12T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-12-12T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2023\/12\/12\/a-busy-day-at-home-and-abroad-egypts-presidential-election-wraps-cop28-closes-the-un-votes-on-gaza-and-the-fed-kicks-off-its-final-policy-meeting-of-2023\/"},"modified":"2023-12-12T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-12-12T00:00:00","slug":"a-busy-day-at-home-and-abroad-egypts-presidential-election-wraps-cop28-closes-the-un-votes-on-gaza-and-the-fed-kicks-off-its-final-policy-meeting-of-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2023\/12\/12\/a-busy-day-at-home-and-abroad-egypts-presidential-election-wraps-cop28-closes-the-un-votes-on-gaza-and-the-fed-kicks-off-its-final-policy-meeting-of-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"A busy day at home and abroad: Egypt\u2019s presidential election wraps, COP28 closes, the UN votes on Gaza, and the Fed kicks off its final policy meeting of 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning, friends. It\u2019s the third and final day of voting in the presidential election<\/strong>, but attention is focused squarely on Gaza as we start the day. <\/p>\n

Conditions in Gaza are \u201ccatastrophic,\u201d <\/strong>with \u201clittle to eat, no way to keep clean, and collapsing civil order as Israel\u2019s offensive pushes hundreds of thousands towards\u201d the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, the Financial Times<\/a> and Reuters<\/a> write in prominent front-page pieces ahead of a UN General Assembly vote on a ceasefire expected today. <\/p>\n

The big business story: <\/strong>More companies will join the privatization program. <\/p>\n

^^ We have more on all of this below.<\/p>\n

LAST DAY OF VOTING<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/a> #1- It\u2019s the third and final day of the presidential election: <\/strong>Voters at home have been casting ballots for four presidential hopefuls: incumbent President Abdel Fattah El Sisi<\/strong>, Al Wafd Party\u2019s Abdel Sanad Yamama<\/strong>, the Egyptian Social Democratic Party\u2019s Farid Zahran<\/strong>, and the Republican People Party\u2019s Hazem Omar<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Officials say turnout has been impressive:<\/strong> Some 30 mn people have voted in the first two days of the ballot, the highest number to participate in an election in the country\u2019s history, the head of the National Elections Authority (NEA) told reporters yesterday (watch, runtime: 19:35<\/a>). Around 45% of eligible voters have cast their vote so far, behind the 2012 poll (where 52% voted) and 47.5% turnout in 2014.<\/p>\n

Pundits think it\u2019ll top 50%:<\/strong> Amr Adib said that he expects the participation rate to break past 50% by the time the polls close tonight (watch, runtime: 25:51<\/a>), while guests on last night\u2019s Kelma Akhira speculated it could reach 60% (watch, runtime: 4:06<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Last chance:<\/strong> Polls are open from 9am through 9pm today. Find your nearest polling station by entering your national ID number on the NEA website<\/a>. You can also text your national ID number to 5151<\/a> or call the same number to find your polling station and receive your voting number. <\/p>\n

The next steps:<\/strong> Results of the vote are scheduled to be announced on Monday, 18 December. A runoff, if necessary, will take place in early January 2024.<\/p>\n

LAST(?) DAY OF COP28<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/a> #2- It\u2019s crunch time on the final day of COP28 in Dubai<\/strong>,although fierce divisions over a draft agreement could see the conference going into overtime. <\/p>\n

D\u00e9j\u00e0 vu?<\/strong> Last year\u2019s COP27 also ran into overtime<\/a>, with emissions reduction having been the stumbling block. <\/p>\n

This time around, delegates are having a hard time agreeing on language about oil and <\/strong>gas. <\/strong>A week of tense negotiations<\/a> has resulted in a draft agreement<\/a> that would commit countries to \u201creducing\u201d the consumption and production of fossil fuel use in a \u201cjust, orderly and equitable manner\u201d to achieve net zero \u201cby, before, or around\u201d 2050.<\/p>\n

It would be the first time a COP agreement calls for a reduction in the use <\/strong>of oil and gas, but falls far short of the \u201cphase out\u201d language sought by European negotiators and a group of small island nations.<\/p>\n

Saudi Arabia and Arab oil producers are flatly opposed to calls to phase out <\/strong>hydrocarbons. <\/p>\n

There won\u2019t be a blanket call to <\/strong>triple renewable energy production<\/a><\/strong>, instead presenting it as an \u201coption\u201d and not a \u201cprescribed step,\u201d alongside doubling energy efficiency.<\/p>\n

What happens now: <\/strong>Delegates from each participating country are lobbying and being lobbied on the final language, with the EU, small nations, and the United States firmly in one camp, and Arab and producing countries in the other. If there\u2019s no agreement today, talks go into overtime. Under UN rules, any single country can block the adoption of the agreement.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Want more on the story?<\/strong>Enterprise Climate<\/a> has the lowdown, calling the draft agreement a \u201cmixed bag of compromises.\u201d<\/p>\n

UN VOTE ON CEASEFIRE TODAY<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/a> #3- Egypt, Arab world step up diplomatic pressure for Gaza ceasefire:<\/strong> The UN General Assembly will convene today to vote on a non-binding resolution<\/a> demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza as the humanitarian crisis on the ground reaches catastrophic levels. The emergency meeting was called by Egypt and Mauritania after the US blocked another resolution<\/a> at the Security Council last week despite the UN and aid agencies warning of starvation conditions and the imminent collapse of public order. <\/p>\n

FED MEETING TODAY<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/a> #4- <\/strong>The US Federal Reserve begins its two-day policy meeting today<\/strong> where for the first time in almost two years the key question is not when the central bank will raise interest rates, but when it will cut them. Don\u2019t expect any firm indicators about when this might happen, though: the key task for Fed officials is to temper the recent overexcitement in the financial markets, which are pricing in rate cuts earlier than they would like in 2024, according to the Financial Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n

They\u2019re starting to get the message:<\/strong> Much of the heat has been taken out of the recent rally as investors recalibrate their expectations about how the Fed will proceed next year. A potentially key indicator will come later today when fresh US inflation data lands. <\/p>\n

Yesterday:<\/strong><\/p>\n