Good morning, friends, and welcome to another compact, business-focused issue as we celebrate the arrival of hump day. Do you now remember who you are, where you work, and what you were doing before the Eid break?

THE BIG STORY here at home is the latest sign that the boomlet in M&A activity we’ve seen in recent months has legs as our our friends at Infinity and AFC snap up Lekela in what’s being billed as the largest-ever renewables acquisition in Africa. We have chapter and verse on this and other transactions in this morning’s news well, below.

SIGNS OF THE TIMES-

#1- Major corporations are firing people… Goldman Sachs warned yesterday that it may cut staff and slow hiring, TikTok and Vimeo are slashing jobs, and Apple is slowing spending, including (likely) on new staff. They’re just the latest major corporations to announce jobs cuts or hiring slowdowns after HR pros at startups began swinging the axe in late spring.

#2- …at the same time as businesses in the West complain they can’t find qualified staff. And it’s not just in the service industry (restaurants in particular) or retail: Microsoft’s Brad Smith is warning that “US companies are facing a ‘new era’ in which fewer people are entering the workforce and pressure to pay higher salaries may become permanent.”

#3- Are fintech players falling from grace? Some USD 500 bn has been wiped off the value of US fintech startups in the recent equity sell-off, according to the Financial Times. The more than 30 fintechs that listed during the recent IPO boom have lost USD 460 bn and are down more than 50% on average since the start of this year (compared to 29% for the tech-heavy Nasdaq). Fintechs have been hit hard by tighter financial conditions, in which investors are less ready to sink funding into businesses whose earning ability is untested, the salmon-coloured paper says.

#4- It’s just not a great time to be a VC. 2Q 2022 was really bad for venture capital-backed IPOs, Axios Pro Rata reports, citing data from PitchBook. “The IPO window was virtually shut in 2Q 2022, and VC-backed public listings reached a 13-year quarterly low with eight completed.” Throw in a big fundraising slowdown and its shaping up to be somthing of an annus horribilis for VCs.

#5- Is the Gulf IPO boom losing steam? That’s what Bloomberg is wondering after Dubai’s Union Coop slumped 13% in its trading debut. Union followed Tecom Group (down 17% on the first day of trading this month), while the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority has recently given up almost all of the gains it posted since its debut in March.

#6- Armpit hair is back whether we like it or not, the Wall Street Journal kindly informs us all.

ONE RAY OF SUNSHINE- Haleon, GSK’s now-former consumer healthcare unit, just pulled off Europe’s largest listing in more than a decade despite particularly challenging market and macro conditions. With the spinoff, Haleon immediately became one of 20 largest companies in the FTSE with a market cap of about USD 36 bn. The world’s largest standalone healthcare business, Haleon controls brands including Advil, Voltaren and Otrivin. The company is led in North Africa by Nabil Besri. Haleon executed the demerger despite clear macro challenges including the erosion in consumer sentiment amid rising inflation. In parallel, the FTSE 100 is down about 3.8% year-to-date. You can catch the Haleon press release here (pdf) or check out coverage in the global business press: CNBC | Financial Times | Reuters.

WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY-

The state’s national dialogue meetings resume today: The board overseeing the Sisi administration’s national dialogue will hold its second meeting today, during which it will set a schedule of debate, discuss the agenda and form subcommittees.

Need a refresher on the national dialogue? We’ve got you covered.

The government’s public consultations on its state ownership policy continue today with representatives from the wholesale and retail sectors having their say. Sunday’s session brought leather manufacturers together to discuss the state’s privatization plans. Every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday sees workshops on how privatization plans will affect specific industries. You can find more details on the schedule of the meetings here.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is making a rare trip to the Middle East today, traveling to Tehran to attend a summit with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

On the agenda at the summit: An agreement to unlock Ukrainian grain via the Black Sea, according to a Kremlin spokesperson, according to Reuters. A Turkish official said that “small problems” remain but expressed optimism that Ukraine and Russia will sign an agreement this week.

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

THE BIG STORY ABROAD- Climate is dominating the international front pages this morning as ministers from 40 countries gathered in Berlin for the Petersberg Climate Dialogue amid expectations of record temperatures in Europe. With heat waves and wildfires sweeping countries on the continent, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterrres said that humanity was on the verge of committing “collective suicide.” Temperatures in the UK are expected to reach record highs this week (prompting the declaration of a national emergency) while wildfires are raging in France, Spain, Portugal and Greece. (Reuters | AP | FT | Bloomberg | BBC | NYT | Washington Post)

Energy was at the top of the priority list in talks between German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, who is co-chairing the summit as Egypt prepares to host COP27 this fall. We have more details on this in this morning’s Diplomacy section, below.

Germany’s energy situation is looking increasingly grim: Speculation is growing that Russia might not resume gas flows through the vital Nord Stream 1 pipeline next week after Gazprom yesterday told buyers in Europe that it could not guarantee shipments due to “extraordinary” circumstances, according to a letter seen by Reuters. The Russian gas giant has shut the pipeline for 10 days while it conducts annual maintenance and there are fears that it might not turn the gas back on when it finishes on Thursday as Moscow ratchets up the pressure on energy-starved Europe. Before last week, Gazprom had already cut flows through Nordsteam by 40%, leaving Germany’s largest gas provider on the verge of collapse and forcing cities to ration hot water and dim the lights.

Brussels could turn to emergency measures: The EU could move to force member states to cut gas consumption if the energy crisis intensifies in the coming weeks and months, the Financial Times reports.

*** It’s Going Green day — your weekly briefing of all things green in Egypt: Enterprise’s green economy vertical focuses each Tuesday on the business of renewable energy and sustainable practices in Egypt, everything from solar and wind energy through to water, waste management, sustainable building practices and how you can make your business greener, whatever the sector.

In today’s issue: Our combined wind and solar power generation capacity is the highest of any Arabic-speaking country, according to a new report from nonprofit renewables researcher Global Energy Monitor. But as our once oil-reliant neighbors go all in on the energy transition with ambitious plans to ramp up renewables output, we could lose our edge on wind and solar by the time 2030 rolls around.