FAB reportedly still has eyes for Standard Chartered: First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) is working under the radar on an all-cash bid of USD 30-35 bn for UK-headquartered bank Standard Chartered under the code name Silver-Foxtrot, after putting earlier takeover plans on hold. The bank denied the report in a statement picked by Asharq Business. Bloomberg, which broke the news, has not retracted its story.

Russia retaliates against oil price cap: Oil rose more than 2% on Friday after Russia announced it would slash output by 5% in March in response to Western sanctions on its energy exports, Reuters reported. The move, which will remove 500k barrels a day from the market, caused Brent crude futures to climb 2.2% to USD 86.4 a barrel, and US crude to rise 2.1% to USD 79.7. Both benchmarks saw weekly gains of more than 8%. Washington — which spearheaded the move to impose a price cap on Russia’s seaborne oil exports — accused Moscow of weaponizing energy on Friday.

ALSO WORTH NOTING:

• PIF onboard Abraj Energy IPO: The Saudi sovereign wealth fund will be an anchor investor in the IPO of Oman’s Abraj Energy Services, which is expected to raise as much as USD 244 mn. The state-owned oil-drilling unit is offering 49% of the company, with 40% of that stake earmarked for anchor investors. (Bloomberg)
• All falls down: Adidas shares sink on Yeezy woes. Adidas shares fell 11% on Friday following news that the sportswear company stands to lose around EUR 1.2 bn in revenue this year if it is unable to sell its existing Yeezy inventory. The sportswear giant terminated its relationship with Ye last year following a string of anti-semitic comments. (CNBC)
• Are Chinese firms returning to the US for listing? Hesai Technology, a China-based car sensor manufacturer, has launched an IPO on the Nasdaq stock exchange, signaling a potential return of Chinese companies to the US IPO market following a near two-year retreat. (FT)

	EGX30	17,614	+3.9% (YTD: +20.7%)
	USD (CBE)	Buy 30.44	Sell 30.53
	USD at CIB	Buy 30.45	Sell 30.55
	Interest rates CBE	16.25% deposit	17.25% lending
	Tadawul	10,412	-0.9% (YTD: -0.6%)
	ADX	10,023	+0.1% (YTD: -1.8%)
	DFM	3,454	+0.2% (YTD: +3.5%)
	S&P 500	4,090	+0.2% (YTD: +6.5%)
	FTSE 100	7,882	-0.4% (YTD: +5.8%)
	Euro Stoxx 50	4,198	-1.2% (YTD: +10.7%)
	Brent crude	USD 86.39	+2.2%
	Natural gas (Nymex)	USD 2.51	+3.5%
	Gold	USD 1,874.50	-0.2%
	BTC	USD 21,836	+0.9% (YTD: +32.3%)

THE CLOSING BELL-

The EGX30 rose 3.9% at Thursday’s close on turnover of EGP 2.5 bn (35% above the 90-day average). Foreign investors were net sellers. The index is up 20.7% YTD.

In the green: Sidi Kerir Petrochemicals (+10.6%), EFG Hermes (+8.2%) and CIB (+6.2%).

In the red: CIRA Education (-1.5%), Oriental Weavers (-0.4%) and Ibnsina Pharma (-0.3%).