Good morning, everyone. We have a packed issue for you this morning, with fresh PMI data for July showing continued slowing momentum in the non-oil business sector; Sidara dropping its takeover bid for Wood Group; Abu Dhabi Investment Authority offloading a stake in Galderma, and much more.

But first, it was an eventful day for global stock markets…

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

Equity markets have endured after a “brutal” sell-off that wiped USD 6.4 tn from global stock markets, triggered by concerns about the US economy potentially slowing faster than expected while the Fed keeps policy rates unchanged.

REMEMBER- Last Friday, the US released its July payroll data, showing slower job growth and unemployment rising to 4.3%. The news caused a big selloff, with stocks and bonds taking a hit. Earlier reports about weak manufacturing and construction only made things worse.

Where the day ended: US markets all ended in the red, despite paring back some of their losses during the day as “encouraging” US services data helped to steady markets. Treasury yields also clawed back some losses following the fresh data. Still, all three major US indexes were down more than 2.5%:

  • S&P 500: -3.0%
  • Dow: -2.6%
  • Nasdaq Composite: -3.4%

Tech shares were among the worst performers, with Nvidia closing down 6.4%, Apple falling 4.8%, and Tesla dropping 4.2%.

Our part of the world wasn’t spared: It was also a sea of red in Middle Eastern markets, with the DFM closing down 4.5%, the ADX falling 3.4%, the EGX falling 2.3%, and Tadawul closing down 2.1%.

Panic mode on: Wall Street’s “fear gauge” — Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) — settled around 38, after peaking at 65, its highest point since the early days of the pandemic. A VIX level above 30 is considered high, indicating significant market fear or uncertainty. While a level below 20 is typically considered low.

Over in the forex and crypto markets:

  • JPY: Rose to a seven-month high against the USD.
  • Malaysia’s MYR: Hit its highest level against the greenback since April 2023.
  • BTC dropped to USD 54k on Monday, down from USD 62k on Friday.

WHERE THINGS STAND TODAY- The Nikkei is up in early trading, rising more than 8% within minutes of trading opening this morning to pare back some of its losses from yesterday. The index was down 12.4% yesterday, marking its worst crash since 1987, which added to worries about global market instability.

The story is single-handedly leading the conversation everywhere this morning: FinancialTimes | Bloomberg | Reuters | WSJ | CNBC

MEANWHILE- Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled to India yesterday after stepping down following weeks of violent anti-government demonstrations.

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT-

#1- The Foreign Affairs Ministry is urging Emirati citizens in the UK to steer clear of areas witnessing riots and protests, and avoid crowded areas, the UAE Embassy in London said in a statement on X. Citizens should call the UAE Embassy in London (on 0097180024 and 0097180044444) in the case of emergency and register on the Twajudi service for consular services.

ICYMI- The UK is seeing anti-immigrant protests and far-right violence erupt across several cities, after a mass stabbing in Southport last Tuesday was falsely linked to immigrants and Muslims online, with counter-protests later erupting.

#2- Emirates canceled flights to Bangladesh yesterday and today amid ongoing unrest in the country, according to a travel update, while sister budget carrier Flydubai revised its flight schedule so that flights operate during daytime hours, Gulf News reports.

WEATHER– Expect to see cloudy skies until Thursday, with a chance of rainfall, particularly in the East and South regions, according to the National Center of Meteorology’s forecast.

The mercury will soar to 42°C today in Dubai before dropping to an overnight low of 35°C. Meanwhile, in Abu Dhabi, temperatures will peak at 41°C, with a low of 34°C.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

Adia’s consortium has until Friday to formalize Hargreaves bid: A consortium of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (Adia) and private equity firm CVC Capital will now have until 9 August to submit a formal offer to acquire UK’s investment firm Hargreaves Lansdown, after Hargreaves Lansdown extended a previous deadline of 5 August, according to a London Stock Exchange filing.

REMEMBER- Hargreaves Lansdown granted Adia and CVC Capital due diligence in July, after the consortium submitted a fourth bid following several rejections, valuing it at around GBP 5.41 bn. Hargreaves’ board said at the time it was willing to recommend the proposal. Investors have reportedly raised concerns over the fairness of the proposed takeover for Hargreaves’ shareholders, with the main sticking point being the weeding out of funds that will be unable to retain their stakes in Hargreaves following its delisting from the LSE, the Financial Times reported earlier.

IN OTHER ADIA NEWS- Adani Energy Solutions’ wrapped a USD 1 bn secondary share sale in which the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (Adia) was reportedly an investor, Reuters reports. The qualified institutional placement (QIP) also saw substantial interest from US investors, Indian mutual funds, and ins. companies, and was 6x oversubscribed. The funds raised will be allocated to power transmission investments, smart metering projects, and debt repayment.

DATA POINTS-

#1- Dubai Chamber of Commerce businesses reported AED 145.9 bn in exports and re-exports in 1H 2024, and issued over 372k certificates of origin, according to a statement. The GCC region led as the top export destination with AED 78.9 bn in trade, representing 53.9% of the total. Non-GCC MENA countries followed, accounting for 23.9% with AED 34.9 bn, while African markets were the third top destination with AED 14.5 bn, accounting for 9.9% of the total.

#2- Real estate transactions in Dubai grew 59% y-o-y to a record 17k transactions in July, with transaction value standing at an all-time high of AED 55.5 bn during the month, up 57% y-o-y, Property Finder said in a press release. The off-plan market accounted for the lion’s share of transactions, with 9.3k transactions, up 77% y-o-y, worth some AED 19.4 bn in value, up 54% y-o-y. Meanwhile, the ready market drew some AED 36 bn across 8.4k transactions during the month.

#3- Abu Dhabi’s hotel occupancy rates are expected to reach a record 80% in July and August 2024, VP of Marketing at Rotana Hotels Amal Harb told Al Etihad, while IHG Hotels and Resorts head of commercial operations for India, Middle East, and Africa, Tarek Labib expects an occupancy rate of around 72% this summer.

Abu Dhabi’s hotels welcomed 1.25 mn tourists in summer 2023, up 21% y-o-y compared to the recorded 1 mn tourists in summer 2022, Al Etihad reports, citing data from the emirate’s Department of Culture and Tourism. June 2023 alone saw a 33% y-o-y growth in hotel guests, while July saw a 23% y-o-y increase in occupancy rates and August saw a 22% y-oy increase. This growth was driven by a surge in hotel demand and an influx of tourists, with Yas Island posting the highest levels of occupancy in the emirate.

OLYMPICS-

Day 10 was nowhere near as eventful as day 9, but here are some of the highlights.

Swedish pole vaulter Armand Duplantis — aka Mondo — was the star of the Paris Olympics yesterday. Mondo secured the pole vault gold and broke his own record suspending the bar 6.25m.

The Egyptian Pharaohs lost 3-1 to host France in the semifinal of the men’s Olympic football tournament last night. Team Egypt scored the match’s first goal, before France scored in the last 8 minutes of the match and pushed the match into extra-time. Egypt will face Morocco on Thursday, where they will play for the bronze.

TEAM UAE- UAE rider Omar Al Marzooqi qualified for the final of individual showjumping — which you can catch today at 12pm — after finishing 21st out of 66 competing. His teammates, Abdullah Al Marri and Salim Al Suwaidi are both out of the competition.

The medal standings now at the Paris Olympics:

  • United States (21 gold, 79 overall)
  • China (21 gold, 53 overall)
  • France (13 gold, 48 overall)
  • Australia (13 gold, 33 overall)
  • Great Britain (12 gold, 42 overall)

Want to see when your favorite sport is on? Check out the official schedule here.

MEANWHILE- Are you planning to be in Egypt on 24 September? You may be interested in attending our 2024 Enterprise Finance Forum. Seating is strictly limited at our flagship, invitation-only forum for C-suite executives and other senior leaders.

Why attend? We’re in the early days of a generational realignment of power in our industry — in our region and beyond — and on the cusp of the biggest intergenerational transfer of wealth the world has ever seen. With that as the backdrop, we’re going to take stock of where we stand six months after the float of the EGP and ask what’s next for finance in Egypt and the wider region. Among the questions we’ll be asking:

  • What roles will Egypt, Saudi and the UAE play in the regional industry going forward?
  • What are foreign investors looking for right now?
  • Is real estate the only asset class in Egypt?
  • What does the next generation of leaders think as they take over established family businesses?

Do you want to request an invitation? Tap or click the image below.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The World ESG Summit is scheduled to take place on 20-21 August at Dusit Thani in Dubai. The two-day business conference will gather public and private sector players from key sectors like energy, utilities finance, and manufacturing to explore ESG integration across all industries.

The Sharjah Entrepreneurship Centre (Sheraa) is accepting applications for the AccessSharjah Challenge until 5 September, offering two grants worth AED 250k to two startups in the sectors of agritech and livestock health. Shortlisted startups will receive mentorship to help them expand.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.

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