Good morning, friends. We’ve nearly made it through another workweek together. As always, thank you all very much for starting your workdays with us.

THE BIG STORY here at home as we slide into the weekend: The government’s covid-19 vaccine program is on track, cabinet officials say, and we have even more M&A news as a unit of Hassan Allam Holding eyes a transaction in the transportation industry.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD is the US House of Representatives signing off yesterday on the Biden administration’s USD 1.9 tn covid stimulus bill — the largest in US history — which will see most American households receiving USD 1,400 stimulus payments. The bill, which was initially met with resistance from Republicans, is being touted as President Joe Biden’s “first major victory in office.” Reuters, the New York Times, and the Wall Street Journal have more.

*** CATCH UP QUICK from yesterday’s edition of EnterprisePM:

• How are rising US treasury yields affecting the EGP as well as Egyptian stocks and bonds? Our lucrative carry trade could come under pressure if US bonds grow in attractiveness, analysts told us.
• Inflation edged up to 4.5% in February from 4.3% the month before, thanks to rising housing, utility, and tobacco costs, Capmas said.
• The eight-year Damietta LNG plant saga is officially over after Union Fenosa and the Spanish Egyptian Gas Company signed the final settlement agreement.

HAPPENING TODAY-

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok will arrive in Cairo for a two-day visit to follow up on GERD talks.

Oil Minister Tarek El Molla will discuss the government’s strategy to attract investment to Egypt’s mining sector at an event hosted by AmCham today.

Le Marché opens today. The anchor of the annual expo scene runs through Sunday at the Egypt International Convention Centre, with over 300 local and international brands set to showcase their wares. Full details and digital catalogue on the show’s website.

Our friends at CIB and Vodafone Egypt will receive their Egyptian Gender Equity Seal certifications (pdf) from the World Bank, the National Council for Women, and the UK Embassy in Egypt. CIB and Vodafone will be the first two recipients of the certification, which is designed for private sector companies.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The House of Representatives returns from its recess this Sunday, 14 March. On the agenda for the House’s next plenary session:

• The Bankruptcy Act which earned committee-level approval in January;
• A EGP 2 bn overdraft for the FY2020-2021 state budget to help finance measures to prop up the economy and certain sectors amid the fallout from the pandemic, which also got a committee nod in January.

The Marketers League runs this Saturday and Sunday, 13-14 March, at Kundalini Grand Pyramids Hotel in Giza. This year’s theme is Beyond the Pandemic with panelists and speakers including our friend Tarek Nour (founder of Tarek Nour Communications), Ayman Hegazi (CEO of Allianz), Sherine Zaklama (CEO, Rada Research and Public Relations), and Walid Hassouna (CEO, EFG Hermes Finance).

Business tech expert and TEDx speaker Patrick Schwerdtfeger will explain how entrepreneurs, businesses and investors can harness disruptive tech at a webinar hosted by AmCham on Tuesday, 16 March. The two-hour event will see Schwerdtfeger talk block chain, AI and crypto, and discuss how the business community can reposition in a world undergoing rapid technological change. Register for the event here.

Life coach Arfeen Khan is giving a talk at a virtual AmCham event on Monday, 15 March.

The Central Bank of Egypt will meet to discuss interest rates on Thursday, 18 March.

The British-Egyptian Business Association (BEBA) will host a virtual conference on how Egyptian and UK firms can work together on sustainable manufacturing projects in Africa in the post-Brexit environment on Tuesday, 23 March. Check out the agenda here (pdf).

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

CORRECTION- The company named “Modon Real Estate Development” to which we referred yesterday in a story on construction in the new administrative capital is not the Modon Developments SAE owned by the Lotfy Soliman family, but a separate and unrelated company. The story has since been updated on our website.