Good morning, wonderful people. It’s another packed issue today, with fallout from Russia’s war in Ukraine still dominating the headlines here at home.

Remember that historic commodities shock we mentioned yesterday? Apparently not historic enough, according to the folks in Washington, who are now debating an oil + gas blockade on the world’s second-largest producer.

Brace: In the early hours of this morning Brent crude surged to highs not seen since 2008 after US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced that Washington is in “very active discussions” with allies about implementing an embargo on Russian oil and gas in retaliation for its military campaign in Ukraine. The move may have support in Congress. The markets reacted as you’d expect: The cost per barrel spiked 18% to briefly hit USD 139 when the market opened. It has since retreated to USD 129.1 (+9.2%) as of dispatch time.

Are they serious? Until now, the idea of banning Russian oil has (for good reason) been off the table. Moscow supplies 17% of the world’s gas and 12% of its oil into an already-tight market reeling from the conflict as well as post-covid demand adjustments. Shutting off Russian hydrocarbons would be tantamount to seppuku for the energy-stricken EU, which sources some 40% of its gas from Russia. The inflationary blowback on the US and the UK, both of which are already facing soaring energy costs, would also be severe. The move is particularly tricky for Biden, who is facing growing criticism at home over his administration’s handling of fuel prices which are now at their highest level since 2008.

And: We hope Western policymakers are cognizant of a world outside of Russia. The war is already causing shockwaves in the developing world, with food, raw materials and energy prices already at levels not seen in decades. The IMF last week warned that the war and subsequent sanctions on Russia will have a “severe impact” on the global economy, and that was before Blinken floated the potential oil ban.

The stock markets are reacting with similar shock: Asian markets are deep in the red this morning with the Hang Seng suffering the heaviest losses (-3.6% as of dispatch time). Things don’t look any better for Europe and the US where stock futures are a sea of red.

*** HATS OFF THIS MORNING to Mohamed Maait, Ali El Moselhy and Tarek El Molla. The three ministers have been on point for more than a week now, and their transparency about how the government is managing rising prices of oil and wheat (as well as the logistics of a tricky global grain market) is refreshing. Once upon a time, we would have been burying our collective head in the sand instead of admitting that what’s happening now is a challenge to navigate — let alone explaining impact and strategy in public.

SIGN OF THE TIMES #1- Vulture funds are starting to snap up Ukrainian and Russian debt, the Wall Street Journal reports in what it’s billing as an exclusive. You know it was just a matter of time…

SIGN OF THE TIMES #2- Moscow’s loss is Dubai’s gain. Goldman Sachs is moving staff out of Russia to Dubai, which serves as the bulge bracket stalwart’s hub in our neck of the woods.

^^ We have more on how the war is impacting Egypt in this morning’s news well, below,

WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY-

PSA #1- You can now get your second covid vaccine or booster shot at any vaccination center, according to new rules announced by the Health Ministry yesterday.

There’s one caveat: You can get it anywhere only if you haven’t received a text message directing you to a specific location. Adults over 65 can get their booster three months after their second dose, while those under 65 should wait six months before getting it. Anyone who got the Johnson & Johnson shot can get the booster two months later.

PSA #2- The sandstorm has passed, but winter has not, Mahmoud Shaheen, a senior official at the Egyptian Meteorological Authority (EMA), told Kelma Akhira’s Lamees El Hadidi (watch, runtime 2:10). Don’t put on your summer clothes just yet: colder weather — by our Egyptian standards — is expected to last until March 21st, said Shaheen. We will see daytime highs of 21-22°C in the capital city and overnight lows of around 10-12°C through Thursday, according to the EMA (pdf). Our favourite weather app thinks it will be a bit warmer than that, but it’s a close call.

LATER THIS MONTH-

The Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company will this month sign a power purchase agreement for 1.1 GW of wind projects with Saudi renewables company ACWA Power, Al Borsa reported yesterday, citing sources it claims have knowledge of the matter. The plants will cost more than USD 1.2 bn to implement, the sources claimed.

ANALYST NOTE OF THE WEEK- Check out this doozy, courtesy of BCA Research, which should raise a smirk even as it casually assigns a 10% chance of nuclear war. “If an ICBM is heading your way, the size and composition of your portfolio becomes irrelevant … The risk of Armageddon has risen dramatically. Stay bullish on stocks over a 12-month horizon.”

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman will be in town this Thursday and Friday, the State Department said in a statement on Thursday. Sherman will meet with Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and “other senior officials,” including National Council for Human Rights chief Moushira Khattab.

Contemporary art and culture center Darb1718 is hosting its 3031 Art Festival until next Saturday, 12 March on its premises in Fustat, Old Cairo. Unique collections of multidisciplinary art will be on display along with live music, dance, theater performances, and interactive workshops. Guest speakers Adsum Art Consultancy will be on hand to discuss investing in art. Catch a full day of activities from 1pm–9:30pm on weekends and weekdays from 4pm–1pm.

Other news triggers to keep your eye on over the next few weeks:

• Inflation: Inflation figures for February will be released on Thursday, 10 March.
• Interest rates: The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) will hold its next monetary policy meeting on Thursday, 24 March.

The Ahlan Ramadan supermarket expo will take place from 24 March to 1 April at the Cairo International Convention Center.

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

*** It’s Blackboard day: We have our weekly look at the business of education in Egypt, from pre-K through the highest reaches of higher ed. Blackboard appears every Monday in Enterprise in the place of our traditional industry news roundups.

In today’s issue: YouTube has become the go-to edutainment platform for many, serving up mns of hours of online learning without charge. But the sheer amount of information (and misinformation) means it’s more important than ever to pick your sources wisely. To help orient you on your quest for online wisdom, we present our roundup of some of the most interesting and factually rigorous channels out there right now.