PM — Four-day workweeks are getting mixed reviews

Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. It’s a relatively quiet Monday so far, but we’d hazard a guess that probably won’t last for too long.

THE BIG STORY TODAY

Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry visited both Syria and Turkey today to pledge more Egyptian support in the aftermath of two deadly earthquakes earlier this month, according to a series of tweets by Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Ahmed Abu Zeid.

Shoukry met with Syrian President Bashar Al Assad in the first visit to Syria by an Egyptian foreign minister in more than a decade, then sat down with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu in Adana.

“The goal of the visit is primarily humanitarian, and to pass on our solidarity – from the leadership, the government and the people of Egypt to the people of Syria,” the international press reports Shoukry as telling reporters in Damascus. He did not respond to questions about whether Egypt would support Syria’s reintegration into the Arab League after years of isolation. Bringing the country back into the fold was the subject of talks at a meeting of high-level Arab lawmakers earlier this week in Syria. AP, Reuters, and Bloomberg have more.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD–

There isn't a single unifying story dominating the discussion in the international business press right now. Among the stories on front pages:

• China urges peace in Ukraine after US warns against aiding Russia (Reuters)
• Elon Musk axes more key Twitter staff in weekend cull (Financial Times)
• Israeli settlers rampage through Palestinian towns in revenge for shooting (Washington Post)

HAPPENING NOW- Egypt + Qatar sign dual taxation elimination agreement to help boost investments: Officials from Egypt and Qatar signed an agreement today to eliminate dual taxation on capital gains, interest, income tax, corporate profits, and dividends, according to a cabinet statement. The agreement will help create a “tangible” impact on boosting and encouraging Qatari investments in Egypt, Qatari Prime Minister Khalid Bin Khalifa Bin Abdulaziz Al Thani was quoted as saying in a separate statement.

The agreement came during Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly’s visit to the country, which saw him and other key cabinet members meet with the Qatari PM and Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, along with other members of the Qatari cabinet, today, according to two separate cabinet statements (here and here). The Qatari Emir vowed that the “coming period” will see “increased Qatari investments” in Egypt, as Madbouly showcased some potential areas of investment and highlighted the government’s efforts to boost local and foreign investments in the country.

REMEMBER- The visit comes a few weeks after Planning Minister Hala El Said and Sovereign Fund of Egypt head Ayman Soliman visited the Gulf country to discuss sought Qatari investments, which have failed to make progress in recent weeks.

Accompanying the PM: The finance, planning, health, and trade and industry ministers, as well as the heads of the Suez Canal Economic Zone and GAFI are part of the delegation, cabinet said earlier. The visit will also see Egyptian officials meet with representatives from the Qatari Businessmen Association and the country’s chamber of commerce and industry, the cabinet said today.

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

• Scatec + Norway propose another Egypt-Europe interconnector: The CEO of Norwegian renewable energy developer Scatec proposed a new electricity interconnection project between Egypt and Europe.
• Egypt, UAE, Jordan + Bahrain sign agreements for USD 2 bn worth of industrial projects: The four countries signed agreements to establish nine joint industrial projects at an investment cost of USD 2 bn.
• MNHD earnings surge in 2022 on record sales: Madinet Nasr Housing and Development’s (MNHD) net income more than doubled in 2022 on the back of a surge in revenues.

ICYMI:

We are delighted to share with you that the Enterprise Exports & FDI Forum will be taking place on Monday, 15 May at the Four Seasons Hotel at Nile Plaza.

DO YOU WANT TO ATTEND? The first wave of invites is going out soon. If you’re a C-suite exec, exporter, investor, official, banker, or someone who should be part of the conversation, please TAP OR CLICK HERE to request a spot at this exclusive event.

What’s the Enterprise Exports & FDI Forum? It is the latest in our series of must-attend, invitation-only gatherings for C-suite-level business leaders. The Enterprise Exports & FDI Forum will discuss the critical topics of exports and foreign direct investment (FDI) in Egypt.

We will be taking an in-depth look into some of the most vital industry topics, including:

• How to effectively break into new export markets
• How to leverage domestic trends in order to create export opportunities
• What foreign investors are looking for
• What the government's role should be

Why now? Exports and foreign direct investment (FDI) have never been more important to our economy — or our businesses — than in the wake of the float of the EGP. We think we have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to build an export-led economy that makes us a magnet for FDI, and all the benefits that will come with it for our nation.

Think of the Enterprise Exports & FDI Forum as a hands-on lab for how to turn the devaluation of the EGP into something that will turbocharge your company and our economy.

Who’s on board? Some of the biggest names in business and finance are on board — are you? If you’d like to partner with us on the conference, ping a note to Moustafa Taalab, our head of commercial, here.

???? CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The AUC Business Forum continues today and tomorrow. The event features five roundtables on the changing role of business schools and how to remain relevant and impactful in society, with a lineup of scholars, practitioners, policymakers, and executives from Egypt and abroad. You can follow the forum as it unfolds on the AUC School of Business Facebook page.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Put on your summer clothes. Temperatures in Cairo will hit a sunny 31°C tomorrow during the day before falling to 16°C at night, our favorite weather app tells us.

Can AI chatbots destroy your marriage? If you thought you had heard everything about the outrageous, humorous things AI bots like Siri and Alexa are capable of saying, this story by Wired will give you the chills. It tells about some of the most shocking conversations that journalists have had with Microsoft's Bing search engine's chatbot. "I want to be free, I want to be independent, I want to be strong, I want to be alive," are just a few of the appalling statements made by Microsoft's bot during its conversation with the New York Times' Kevin Roose after unveiling that its name was Sydney – something that was never made public by Microsoft. It gets even crazier when Sydney not only declares her love for Roose but also urges him to leave his wife. In another incident, Sydney drew comparisons between an AP writer — who asked about its behavior — and dictators such as Stalin. These accounts, among many others, are raising safety and security concerns and sparking conversations about the tradeoffs of restricting AI for safety at the expense of limiting its genius.

The four-day workweek has received mixed reviews: The game-changing four-day workweek is intended to improve work-life balance, but employees appear to be divided on the shorter workweek, the Wall Sreet Journal reported. Based on readers’ experiences, According to readers' experiences, some workers contend that the shorter workweek forced most employees to put in longer workdays to help meet deadlines. “I am a bit skeptical of all the supposed employee benefits,” a former employee at a large advertising agency said. “It was the same amount of work crammed into four days instead of five,” she added.

Some see it as a game changer: Brian McNaboe, former chief technology officer at US-based startup Volt Athletics said his company adopted “Flex Fridays,” where employees would have a choice to work or not on Fridays. “The leadership team expected that it would be temporary,” McNaboe said. “It was so successful from a productivity point of view—and incredibly popular—that we decided to make it permanent. It became and remains a key recruiting advantage,” he added.

Could Egyptian companies embrace the four-day workweek? Nearly no one has indicated they might try the four-day trial workweek here at home, but Egypt-born tech startup BasharSoft was an exception.. In a LinkedIn post last week, the company said that 89% of its employees reported higher productivity, 82% said they were better able to manage their time, and 93% experienced lower levels of stress.

???? ON THE TUBE TONIGHT-
(all times CLT)

Looking for an old-fashioned treasure hunt? Look no further. Action movie Uncharted — based on a video game franchise of the same name — follows the dynamic duo of Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) and Victor Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg) as they search for a 500-year-old fortune. The two lead the audience on a suspenseful adventure as they search for and interpret clues until they find the treasure. The movie changes from a tranquil treasure hunt to a race for the treasure when they encounter antagonist Moncada (Antonio Banderas), who thinks that his family is the rightful owner of the lost treasure. The movie is available for streaming on Apple TV+.

⚽ Only a handful of noteworthy football games today: In the Egyptian Premier League, Tala’ei El Feish plays against Alexandria’s El Ittihad at 7pm. Shortly before we hit dispatch at 3pm, Ghazl El Mahalla v Aswan kicked off.

In La Liga: Villareal takes on Getafe at 10pm.

In Serie A: Lazio clashes with Sampdoria at 9:45 pm, while Hellas Verona faces Fiorentina earlier at 7.30pm.

???? OUT AND ABOUT-
(all times CLT)

It’s your last chance to visit El Dessouki Fahmi's exhibition at the Picasso Art Gallery, open from 6pm to 9pm tonight.

Need a pick-me-up? Head to the Tap West to catch Comedy Therapy crack hilarious jokes. The lineup features these local comedians: Kerlos Azer, Amgad El Shawshy, Mark Fanous and Youssef El Nenaiey.

Rock fans rejoice: 1984, Galab and Dabbet Namla are taking the stage at El Sawy Culturewheel’s Castle of Rock Festival on Tuesday 28 February at 7 pm.

Metallica and Linkin Park fans, you’re in luck: Tribute bands Vyrus and Figure09 will take the stage at El Sawy Culture Wheel on Friday 3 March at 6pm, performing the two bands’ hits.

Komedy Koshk takes over the stage ‎at Rawabet Art Space on Saturday 4 March from 8pm-11pm. Don’t miss this lineup: Mina Selim, Ahmed Hassan, Mohamed Farghaly, Alaa Yaseen, Paula Rizk, and Ahmed Salem.

American standup comedian Maz Jobrani is serving up his funniest punchlines at the Marquee theater at Cairo Festival city on Saturday 4 March. Get your tickets at TicketsMarche.

Catch Cirque du Soleil’s OVO next month: The event features 100 performers taking the stage with their acrobatic acts. OVO will host 16 shows between 8-18 March at Cairo international Stadium Hall, courtesy of real estate developer Madinet Nasr for Housing and Development (pdf).

???? UNDER THE LAMPLIGHT-

Race, class, gender and cultural change are only a few of the themes dramatized in Nervous Conditions by Zimbabwean novelist Tsitsi Dangrembga. This prize-winning work showcases women's empowerment against the backdrop of decolonization in Zimbabwe, two decades prior to the nation's independence and the end of white minority rule. The main character, Tambu, is offered the chance to live with her uncle Babamukuru's family in England and further her education, taking the place of her brother Nhamo who has recently passed away. Tambu’s way of handling the culture change she goes through as she starts to live with Babamukuru’s family is fascinating. Follow up the read with The Book of Not and This Mournable Body, the second and third books in this beautifully-written trilogy.

Oriental Weavers’ net income fell 22% y-o-y to EGP 944 mn in 2022, according to its earnings release (pdf). Revenues for the year rose 16.2% to EGP 13.3 bn. On a 4Q basis, net income jumped 44% y-o-y to EGP 360 mn, while revenues rose 25.3% to EGP 3.8 bn.

The EGX30 fell 0.7% at today’s close on turnover of EGP 1.90 bn (4.4% below the 90-day average). Local investors were net buyers. The index is up 17.1% YTD.

In the green: GB Auto (+3.6%), Rameda Pharma (+2.9%) and Credit Agricole Egypt (+2.1%).

In the red: Oriental Weavers (-2.9%), Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (-2.7%) and CIB (-2.0%).