It’s a relatively calm Wednesday afternoon on the home front, ladies and gentlemen, giving us hope for a smooth slide into the weekend and Eid Al Fitr holiday.

SO, WHEN DO WE EAT? You’ll be breaking your fast at 6:30pm CLT this evening in the capital city, and fajr prayers are at 3:42am.

THE BIG STORY TODAY

Steel prices are cooling off: A handful of steel manufacturers in Egypt have started reducing their prices, head of the Cairo Chamber of Commerce’s building materials division Ahmed El Zeiny said, according to Youm7. Ezz Steel is among those companies, saying in a bourse disclosure (pdf) today that it will slash the price per ton of steel by EGP 830 to EGP 19,170. The rising costs of building materials has been a sore point for local contractors and real estate developers, which are feeling the pinch of higher prices brought on by the Russia-Ukraine war, as we’ve reported in previous editions of Hardhat (here and here).

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

Nothing is cooling off over in Europe: Russia’s decision to cut off natural gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria is still leading the conversation this afternoon. The EU is mapping out a coordinated response, and has been working to ensure alternative deliveries in anticipation of a halt in Russian gas flows, with a meeting of the gas coordination group currently underway, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement. Germany’s economy ministry said it was meeting with EU partners to discuss the decision, and that it is monitoring the situation “very closely,” adding that the country’s gas flows are currently at “a stable level.”

Not everyone is defiant, though: Four European gas buyers have already complied with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s demand to make payments in RUB, Bloomberg reports, citing sources in the know, adding that ten companies have already taken the needed steps to pay in the Russian currency and opened accounts at Gazprombank. Even if other buyers follow Bulgaria and Poland’s footsteps and reject Moscow’s demands, there probably won’t be other immediate gas cutoffs to more countries until the second half of May, when the next payments are due, the sources said.

MARKET REACTION- European gas prices surged by a fifth today, with futures contracts trading at EUR 106 / mWh. Meanwhile, Russia’s oil production is expected to fall by as much as 17% in 2022 — its most significant decline in decades — an economy ministry document showed, according to Reuters.

** CATCH UP QUICK on the top stories from today’s EnterpriseAM:

• State puts out welcome mat for private business, looking to net USD 40 bn in investment over four years: The state wants to attract USD 10 bn in fresh investment annually over an unspecified four-year period by opening the door to “private sector participation in state-owned assets,” President Abdel Fattah El Sisi said in a televised speech yesterday.
• A subsidiary of El Garhy Steel has acquired a majority stake in the National Glass and Steel Co. from ADIB Egypt, purchasing around 13.3 mn shares at EGP 2.25 per share for a total of EGP 30 mn.
• Saudi’s Foodics closes largest-ever SaaS series C round in Mideast: Saudi restaurant management platform Foodics has raised USD 170 mn in the biggest software-as-a-service (SaaS) series C funding round in the MENA region.

???? CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Businesses have four days left to file their corporate tax returns. Companies with financial years ending 31 December have to file their returns by Saturday, 30 April.

Also on the final day of the month: The fixed customs exchange rate introduced last month following the EGP devaluation will be lifted. Greenbacks used for importing essential items such as basic commodities and materials used for manufacturing are currently changing hands at a fixed rate of EGP 16, a move introduced to minimize exchange rate volatility in the wake of the deval.

ITIDA has begun accepting applications for its annual Export IT program: The program is designed to encourage local IT companies to boost exports while reducing related costs. Interested companies have until 31 May to send in their applications, and can check the details here.

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

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Sunny days ahead: It’s time to pull out your cap and sunglasses, as the coming days promise to be sunny and fairly warm, with tomorrow reaching 34°C during the day and 20°C at night, our favorite weather app tells us.

*** WE’RE LOOKING FOR SMART, TALENTED PEOPLE to join the team and help us build some very cool new things. Today, we run two daily publications, five weekly industry verticals, a monthly newsletter — and we have tons more in the pipeline. We offer the chance to work in a fast-paced newsroom on a broad range of topics and in a variety of formats. Our goal is simple: To create value for our growing community of >199k readers by telling stories that matter.

Enterprise is currently in the market for the following positions:

Senior editors who will manage a team of reporters on our current and future editions. Candidates should have at least three years of experience in journalism and a minimum of one of those should have been spent as an editor — but we would deeply value someone with at least five years of work experience. Strong knowledge of Egypt and the region, a demonstrated interest in business / finance, and people management skills are musts.

Seasoned reporters to join our team and create stories that fascinate and inform our readers. Applicants should have serious English-language writing chops, a strong interest — and preferably some professional experience — in business / finance or business journalism, and solid analytical skills. You’ll be expected to pitch stories and take assignments, as well as develop leads into full-blown stories. Reporters should be fluently bilingual, though exceptional unilingual (English) candidates may apply.

We have a preference for Egyptian nationals but will consider international applicants.

Are you a career switcher? Investment bankers, lawyers and other folks trained to be analytical and tell stories do well with us. If you want out of the rat race, consider us an offramp.

Interested in applying? To apply for the editor / reporter positions, please submit your CV along with 2-3 writing samples and a solid cover letter telling us a bit about who you are and why you’re a good fit for our team. Please submit all applications to jobs@enterprisemea.com.