Good morning, nice people. The news cycle has slowed down to a drip, leaving us with a birks issue this morning. Aviation updates from Egypt, UAE, and Saudi Arabia take the lead in today's read, followed by ports updates from Saudi Arabia and Iran. Let’s dive right in.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- India’s largest carrier, IndiGo, is keeping tabs on the Saudi aviation sector’s growth for a possible expansion into the Kingdom, CEO Pieter Elbers told The National. “We need to see how Saudi Arabia will develop in terms of a travel market, projects, construction work and everything that's happening there … There's always a bit of a chicken and egg [situation]: It's either going to be the flights first or the development first,” Elbers said.

REMEMBER- It’s been a busy time for the Saudi aviation sector, as the country anticipates the launch of Riyadh Air this year — with the airline expecting strong and sustained growth in Saudi Arabia’s airline market over the next five years. KSA-headquartered flynas is riding — and leading — a regional low-cost carrier boom, boasting a whopping 63% capacity increase in 2019-2024.

A possible entry into the Saudi market would come on the heels of the airline’s success in the UAE, after it established a solid operational base at Abu Dhabi. IndiGo has more than tripled its weekly flights to the UAE from 35 to 111 in just two years, and has recently expanded to cover Fujairah, Gulf News reports.

IndiGo’s been on an expansion spree: The airline has been expanding in Europe, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia, with a focus on the long-haul market. It has launched flights to Manchester and Amsterdam, and has lined up launches for six other destinations across these geographies. The airline utilizes a fleet of 416 aircraft, and recently doubled its A350 plane order to 60 of the wide-bodies in June to support its growth ambitions.

#2- Egypt’s logistics sector is one of three eyed by the Indian impact investor pioneer Aavishkaar Capital, as part of its plan to expand its investments across Egypt, Associate Director Darren Lobo told Hapi Journal. The firm is in talks with two exporters — particularly in the medical equipment and agriculture sectors — about potential investments through its Global Supply Chain Support Fund, and is speaking to the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise Development Agency to identify further investment targets.

Funneling mns: As a first step, the firm is looking to invest USD 16 mn in three Egyptian projects over the next year and a half, spanning logistics, manufacturing, and food processing. The fund is targeting around USD 250 mn in investments focused on SMEs in Africa, using a mix of blended and debt-based financing. Some USD 95 mn of this fund is earmarked to support supply chains, targeting eight to 10 investments in Africa.

About Aavishkaar Capital: Founded in 2001, the Mumbai-based investment firm manages around USD 550 mn in assets across eight funds, according to its website. The company focuses on using blended finance and debt-based instruments to back SMEs, sealing over 60 investment transactions focused on underserved regions and sectors in Asia and Africa.

#3- Delayed subsidies payouts for Egyptian exporters start trickling: Some 601 exporters received EGP 368 mn in overdue receivables through the Export Development Fund, concluding the first tranche of the direct payment portion of the state’s mechanism to settle its owed export subsidy arrears, according to a statement from the Finance Ministry. The move is part of the state’s efforts to clear EGP 60 bn in overdue payments to exporters tied to shipments dating back to before 30 June 2024, which will be done through a combination of banknote disbursements and offset arrangements.

Expect to see more payments like this soon, with exporters set to receive 50% of their dues in banknote installments over four fiscal years, Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly said when announcing the new mechanism in January. A total of EGP 8 bn will be paid out every year, while the remaining 50% will be settled through offsets against outstanding or future liabilities with the Tax Authority, Customs Authority, and utility providers like gas and electricity companies.

The government is keen not to let arrears from export subsidy commitments pile up again, with the new mechanism requiring that exporters receive full payments going forward within 90 days and without tax deductions. The state has committed EGP 45 bn for the program this fiscal year.

MARKET WATCH-

#1- Oil prices dipped this morning on the back of oversupply concerns triggered by the possible return of pumped Iraqi oil flows to Tukrey, Reuters reports. Brent crude futures fell by USD 0.42 to reach USD 66.15 / bbl by 03.32 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) also dipped by USD 0.36 to trade at USD 61.92 / bbl.

#2- Baltic index on a downward spiral: The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index — which tracks rates for the capesize, panamax, and supramax vessel segments — fell by 31 points to 2,172 points on Monday. The capesize dropped 2.1% to 3,365 points, while the panamax index shed 1.3% to 1,822 points, its lowest since 5 September. The smaller supramax index fell 3 points to 1,486 points.

DATA POINT-

DIEZ trade sees 19% uptick in 2024: Total trade from zones under the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (DIEZ) rose 19% y-o-y to reach AED 336 bn last year, according to the Dubai Media Office. The zones accounted for 13.7% of Dubai’s 2024 non-oil trade — its highest share so far, and marking the fourth year of consecutive growth.

The volume of goods traded in the zones — which include Dubai Airport Freezone, Dubai Silicon Oasis, and Dubai CommerCity — rose 28% y-o-y to 444.3k tons.

Machinery doing the heavy lifting: The machinery, electrical, and electronics sectors accounted for 72% of the zones’ total trade — up 17% y-o-y. Meanwhile, the precious stones, metals, jewelry, and ornaments sector saw a 33% yearly uptick, leading it to contribute 22% of the total.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Turkey will host the Global Freight Summit on Sunday, 28 September until Wednesday, 1 October in Istanbul. The summit will host over 330 attendees and more than 250 firms for policy and knowledge and strategies exchange between forwarding partners.

The UAE will host the African, Middle East, and Islamic Finance Aviation 100 Awards on Monday, 29 September until Wednesday, 1 October in Dubai. The event aims to highlight and reward the most remarkable transactions closed by airlines and aviation manufacturing and leasing firms.

The UAE will host the Global Rail Transport Infrastructure Exhibition and Conference on Tuesday, 30 September until Thursday, 2 October in Abu Dhabi. The event will be hosted by Etihad Rail and is set to welcome over 200 global speakers and upwards of 20k industry attendees to share innovative solutions and develop partnerships.

Saudi Arabia will host the Saudi Maritime and Logistics Congress on Wednesday, 1 October and Thursday, 2 October in Dammam. It will host over 200 registered exhibitors and some 15k attendees from over 90 countries to discuss AI-powered fleet optimization, shifts in global trade, and intelligence-driven infrastructure.

The UK will host the Marine Environment Protection Committee Extraordinary Session from Tuesday, 14 October until Friday, 17 October at the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) HQ in London. The session is set to see the intergovernmental body formally adopt its Net-Zero Framework — rolling out new fuel standards for ships and a global pricing mechanism for emissions.

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