Good morning, folks. We are heading into Ramadan with a brisk read, dominated mainly by ports, zones, and trade news from Morocco, Oman, and Egypt. Shall we?

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- IFC, Egypt to agree on airport privatization plans by mid-March: The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is expected to reach an agreement with the Egyptian government on the privatization plan for the management of 11 airports by mid-March, Asharq Business reports, citing Civil Aviation Minister Sameh Elhefny comments during a press conference. The first phase will see the IFC — which also prepared the plan — offer the Hurghada Airport, followed by Sphinx Airport.

REFRESHER- Reports revealed earlier this month that the IFC’s full airport privatization plan should be out within the next six months. The plan will include the technical, financial, and legal nitty gritty to get the airport privatization push off the ground.

Int’l companies are eyeing our airports: Major global companies have expressed interest in managing Egyptian airports, according to Elhefny, including the three largest operators in Europe, he said. While Elhefny didn’t name which companies were interested, Hassan Allam Holding and France’s Groupe Aéroports de Paris (ADP France) submitted a joint proposal in December to manage and operate Egyptian airports.

IN OTHER EGYPT NEWS- Investment Minister Hassan El Khatib is expected to finalize a trade agreement with Morocco today to resolve an export standoff that has left 150 Egyptian containers — loaded with ceramics, food products, and insulation materials — stranded at Moroccan ports for two weeks, a government source told Al Borsa. The agreement will reportedly be inked today during El Khatib’s visit to Morocco. One proposed solution is for Egypt to increase imports of Moroccan goods to address a trade imbalance.

#2- Subscription for Oman’s Asyad Shipping IPO will wrap today, with public trading reportedly scheduled to begin by mid-March. The company also wrapped up its final nationwide roadshow yesterday at MSX headquarters to market its IPO to both local and global investors, Oman Observer reports.

REMEMBER- Asyad Shipping set a price range of OMR 0.117-0.123 per share last week for its upcoming IPO of a 20% stake — just north of 1 bn company shares. It also secured anchor investors for the IPO, with Qatar Investment Authority’s Falcon Investments and Omani state-owned Mars Development subscribing to 20% and 10% of the offering, respectively, at OMR 0.123 per share — the upper end of the price range.

#3- The UAE and Egypt are launching talks for a comprehensive economic partnership agreement, after agreeing to expand trade and investment during a Joint Economic Committee session in the UAE,according to an Egyptian Investment Ministry statement picked up by Arab Finance. Cooperation will span energy, agriculture, logistics, healthcare, and technology.

#4- Iran’s oil exports are reportedly shrinking as it competes with Russia and Venezuela for few vessels still willing to carry sanctioned oil, Bloomberg reports, citing trade intelligence firm Kpler. The US — enacting what it has described as a maximum pressure policy — has targeted 100 out of 150 tankers involved in shipping Iranian oil, with some now switching to Russia for its higher freight rates. Iran’s oil exports — now estimated at 1.5 mn bpd — may be cut by one-third around May or June, Kpler estimates.

Shadows of hope: “If the US were to remove sanctions on Russian tankers that would be extremely good news for Iran… because finally they can see the freight rate for Russian oil going down and potentially they can have more tankers available,” Bloomberg reports, citing remarks by senior crude oil analyst Muyu Xu at a Kpler event.

Sanctions’ latest: The US’ latest sanctions this week hit over 30 entities involved in selling and transporting Iranian crude, targeting oil brokers from the UAE and Hong Kong, tank operators and managers in India and China, the head of Iran’s National Iranian Oil Company, and the Iranian Oil Terminals Company.

#5- Turkish Airlines’ Boeing order on stand-by: Turkish Airlines’ Boeing order may take up to six months to finalize, with negotiations still ongoing over contract terms and delivery schedules amid limited Boeing slots for production and maintenance, Bloomberg reports. The carrier has plans to double its fleet by 2030, yet persistent supply chain and woes by Boeing and Airbus have threatened its expansion plans. The company has been leasing aircraft to meet demand, CEO Bilal Eksi told Bloomberg.

The background: The Turkish carrier has been in talks with Boeing to acquire nearly 300 jets — consisting of the 787 Dreamliner and the 737 MAX — since mid-2023. The order is part of a 600-aircraft mega order split between Boeing and Airbus.

REFRESHER- Boeing was plagued by delivery delays and general supply chain disruptions in 2024, which analysts expect to persist well into 2025. Lags in the aviation supply chain are impacting the sector at a global scale amid shortages of spare parts and issues with engine maintenance.

MARKET WATCH-

#1- Crude prices rose this morning in response to the US move to revoke Chevron’s license to operate in Venezuela, Reuters reports. Brent crude futures went up this morning by USD 0.24 to USD 72.77 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell by USD 0.18 to USD 68.80 a barrel by 03.28 GMT.

#2- Baltic index charts new gains: The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index — which tracks rates for the capesize, panamax, and supramax vessel segments — surged 73 points to 1,112 on Wednesday. The capesize gained 238 points to reach a 6-week-high of 1,397, while the panamax index fell 28 points to 1,128. The smaller supramax index rose 3 points to 907.

#3- Global LNG consumption is projected to rise by some 60% by 2040 to between 630 and 718 mn tons, according to a Shell report. The projection — which is higher than last year’s — comes on the back of economic growth in Asia, carbon emission cuts, and developments in AI — which are set to help facilitate decarbonization goals — and demand for the transport, industry, cooling, and heating sectors. Demand for LNG-carrying vessels is also forecast to rise beyond 16 mn tons of shipping capacity a year by 2030, a 60% jump from the previous forecast.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The UAE will host the Gulf Ship Finance Forum on Thursday, 10 April in Dubai. The forum will host shipping and finance executives from around the region and the world to host presentations, interviews and panel discussions on ownership, management, chartering, legal and trading in shipping.

The UAE will host the CargoIS Forum on Monday, 14 April in Dubai. The event will discuss industry insights and strategies from leading logistics players, including Emirates SkyCargo and Lufthansa Cargo.

The UAE will host the IATA World Cargo Symposium from Tuesday, 15 April to Thursday, 17 April in Dubai. The event will host sessions, specialized streams, workshops and summits related to technology, security, customs, cargo operations and sustainability for over 1.4k industry leaders.

Check out our full calendar at the bottom of this email for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events and news triggers.