Monday, 2 March 2015

CBE floods market. GB Auto flags unfair advantage of European, Turkish, Moroccan auto imports. KSA’s Salman gives public sign of support to El-Sisi. Parliamentary elections postponed. Arabtec 1 mn units project on hold?

WHAT WE’RE TRACKING TODAY

The 11th Annual EFG Hermes One on One 2015 kicks off today at Atlantis The Palm, Dubai. We’ll have details tomorrow on appearances by Investment Minister Ashraf Salman (keynote interview by EFG Hermes’ Simon Kitchen) and STRATFOR’s George Friedman (keynote interview by EFG Hermes Head of Research Wael Ziada). More than 450 investors from 200 institutions — with aggregate assets under management (AUMs) of over USD 10 trillion — will meet with senior leaders of 107 companies spanning 14 countries across the Middle East and Africa with an aggregate market cap of almost half a trillion dollars.

LAST NIGHT’S TALK SHOWS

It was a relatively slow business news day in Egypt as all eyes turned to the Supreme Constitutional Court and its ruling that at least the section of the elections law governing electoral districts is unconstitutional. The result: There wasn’t much of value to be had on Egyptian television last night.

The most noteworthy moment came when CBE Governor Hisham Ramez called in to Amr Adeeb’s program. Ramez asserted that the USD parallel market is gone and won’t return, referring to the central bank’s decision at the beginning of last month to limit USD deposits at USD 10,000 daily and no more than USD 50,000 per month. Ramez noted that the USD 420 mn sale on the interbank market yesterday helped to cover an import backlog. Youm7 ran a brief piece on Ramez’s call to Adeeb, which we’re taking in light of a rising chorus of complaints from importers that banks — despite reports of rising foreign currency deposits — are not making liquidity available.

Adeeb then railed at an open letter penned by the Egyptian Revolutionary Council, a group largely composed of Ikhwan. Adeeb states that the letter was emailed to everyone on the speaker list for the Egypt Economic Development Conference taking place later this month. It’s not clear if this is what actually happened, or if Adeeb has mistaken the upcoming summit for the Telegraph’s Middle East Congress (the letter is addressed to its attendees), which was held last week in London, wrapping-up on 26 February.

The letter concludes with: “We therefore urge you to boycott all investment in Egypt until the release all political dissidents (starting with the children), stop the use of torture and rape as political weapons, restore a free press, freedom if [sic] assembly, restore the democratic process and start a deep programme of economic reform that aims to uproot corruption from the fabric of the Egyptian economy.” (Read the letter onIkhwanweb.)

Adeeb commented that the Ikhwan are openly waging economic war on the country.

Lamees El Hadidy laser-focused her ire on the fact that the parliamentary elections will be delayed following the Supreme Constitutional Court’s decision to strike down the articles regarding electoral districts. She noted that President Abdelfattah El Sisi, in a statement issued by Ittihadiya, has tasked the government with one month to produce amended articles. A number of media outlets, including Ahram Online, have made a note of the President’s call for a timetable on the amended articles.

In a separate segment, El Hadidy emphasized that President Sisi did not meet with Erdogan during the former’s recent visit to Saudi Arabia — and played a clip from the President’s interview with Al Arabiya reiterating that so far as reconciliation is concerned, the ball is in the court of the Turkish government. Anyone interested in an answer should ask the Turkish side the same question, the president said, as we reported yesterday. El-Sisi also characterized comments made by Turkish officials as interference in Egypt’s internal affairs, as they claim to support the Egyptian people, but fail to recognize that the current government has popular support.

The full Al Arabiya interview with El Sisi is now available in its entirety. The video is embedded in the link here. The interview is in Arabic with English subtitles, running time: 38:10.

SPOTLIGHT ON DELAY OF PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS

Reuters has a nice overview of the facts at play in the postponement of elections for the House of Representatives, while Patrick Kingsley at The Guardian cites legal expert Zaid Al Ali as saying that despite the order coming that the amendments be completed in one month, the delay may in reality take up to six months to be completed. “What the decision does is delay the process indefinitely. The law’s drafters will now have to go back and redraft the law on the basis of the decisions, which will take a while, and then the new versions of the law will also be subject to appeal. That process itself could easily take another six months.”

Daily News Egypt has a roundup of the reactions of various political parties and electoral blocs in Egypt, with the majority either expressing outright support for the verdict, with others such as the Free Egyptians Party simply stating “We are ready whenever they are.” However, head of the Al-Geel Democratic Party Nagy El-Sheaby stated that the constitutional court previously disregarded other constitutional defects in the parliamentary law, and warned that there could be another postponement of the elections due to missing legal amendments to the current law. “If an updated law is passed with other defects, many will file appeals again including myself and we will return to point zero.”

Not all political currents are expressing their support, however, as noted by Ahram Online, who quoted Farid Zahran, a leading member of the Egyptian Social Democratic Party, as saying “The frenzy in media outlets loyal to authorities about the fact that a parliament is not now a priority and the government’s insistence to ratify laws widely viewed beforehand as unconstitutional shows an inclination by the state against holding the elections.”

Egypt’s ‘revolutionary forces bloc’ welcomes Supreme Court’s decision on parliament: Egypt’s Revolutionary Forces bloc welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision to postpone parliamentary elections on Sunday. According to Safwat Omran, the bloc’s secretary general, the court’s  decision to postpone elections has saved the Egyptian state EGP 5 bn, the amount that would have been wasted had the parliament been ruled invalid after the elections took place. In concluding his statements, Omran urged President Sisi to pass a law prohibiting members of the NDP and the Muslim Brotherhood from participating in the upcoming elections. (Read in Arabic)

Finally, Al-Mal asks How will the postponement of the elections impact the Sharm conference?‘ The short answer: Despite the importance of the upcoming House of Representatives, the newspaper says, most analysts it surveyed downplayed the postponement. Al-Borsa serves up similar coverage.

SPEED ROUND

President Abdelfattah El Sisi returned from his one-day official state visit to Saudi Arabia, where as many observers noted, the Saudi king broke protocol and greeted the President at the Riyadh airport in a show of support following speculation on the commitment of future Gulf support toward Egypt, especially in light of recent alleged leaks, the most recent of which were released today, likely timed to coincide with the President’s visit. More on the alleged leaks may be found further below in this section.

According to an emailed statement from the Presidency, President El Sisi and King Salman first and foremost discussed “the deteriorating situation in Yemen and the need to resolve the crisis in order to prevent its negative repercussions on the Gulf and Red Sea regions. The President affirmed Egypt’s support for the Gulf initiative and its implementation mechanism. The President stressed the need to preserve the territorial integrity of Yemen and the unity of its people.”

The statement goes on to say that President El Sisi advocated for a political solution to Syria’s ongoing civil war, as well as to emphasize that the flow of weapons and financing to terrorists in Libya must be stopped.

The meeting was featured on the front page of the online edition of the Saudi Gazette, with the story noting the same points as above, adding that the two leaders discussed President Sisi’s proposed Arab “counter-terrorism force.”

According to Reuters, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Riyadh next week. As noted by the Saudi Press Agency, Erdogan arrived in Medina today, praying at the Masjid al Haram and meeting with the Medina governor.

CBE floods USD 420 mn into interbank market to break import logjam: As noted in our talk show review above, the CBE sold USD 420 mn in the interbank market yesterday to meet pent up import orders for basic commodities, as reported by Reuters and Al-Mal. CBE governor Hisham Ramez is quoted as saying that the interbank market sales would continue along with dollar auctions, with today’s planned auction set to go ahead despite the cancellation of yesterday’s auction. “It’s partly a confidence game: the more the market starts to realize the banking sector is able to provide foreign exchange liquidity, more the liquidity in the parallel market will start to flow into the banking sector,” said Mohamed Abu Basha, an economist at EFG Hermes.

AMAY- Dispute between government and Arabtec puts 1 mn-unit housing project on hiatus: It’s almost an aside in long interview with Al-Masry Al-Youm focusing on the New Suez Canal, but: according to Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces Engineering Authority Kamil El Wazir, the one mn unit housing project has come to a temporary halt due to disagreements between the government and Arabtec. El Wazir says Arabtec’s plans for the project were not in line with those of the government. “Any investor who wants to enter the Egyptian market should bring his money from abroad and not from Egyptian banks, and should use Egyptian labor and raw materials. Those conditions have not been met, so the project has been temporarily suspended,” said El Wazir. The story has also been picked up by Mada Masr and Daily News Egypt, citing the AMAY piece.

GB Auto warns on fate of domestic assembly industry as it reports 4Q/FY results. Raouf Ghabbour, CEO and Chairman of the leading regional assembler and distributor, warned in the company’s 2014 results release that his pleasure at having delivered stellar results in 2014 despite headwinds from an import ban on tuktuks (since aborted) was tempered by concern for the long-term outlook for the industry, noting: “I must sound a note of caution not just for GB Auto, but for every Egyptian company that manufactures or assembles automotive vehicles in this country. The exceptional advantage given to offshore assemblers under the European, Turkish and Moroccan partnership agreements is placing the entire domestic industry under tremendous, unprecedented pressure — and threatens hundreds of thousands of skilled manufacturing jobs in our sector and feeder industries alike. I am confident the government will hear our calls for action to protect jobs at home while simultaneously being fair to our trade partners.” On the results front, the company reported a 35.0% rise in revenues to EGP 12.3 bn in FY14, with net profits rising 50.0% to EGP 174 mn. (Read the company’s full earnings newsletter in pdf here)

We’ll all have the full list of projects to be presented at the Sharm conference within about 48 hours, says Al-Mal, citing an unnamed government source. Fourteen investment banks are helping the government evaluate and market up to 40 projects to support a target of USD 10-12 bn in FDI this year, the newspaper says.

EFG Hermes is eyeing additional investments in renewables and could enter the leasing sector “within months” via its private equity arm, CEO Karim Awad told Reuters on the sidelines of the One-on-One. The newswire reports that EFG is looking to “launch a leasing business during the first half of 2015, subject to regulatory approvals, as the opening move in a number of new expansion projects for the bank, which could lead to extending its business into sub-Saharan Africa in time. … EFG also wants to expand its operations, which include brokerage, asset management and advisory services, in the Gulf region and consolidate its leading position in its home market.” Also from Dubai: Al-Borsa has a round-up on last night’s press conference, attended by Awad, Brokerage co-chief Mohamed Ebeid and Head of Research Wael Ziada.

El-Sisi meets global CEOs of Coca-Cola, Siemens… President Abdelfattah El-Sisi has held a string of meetings with global business leaders and later caucused with key economic advisors in a bid to ensure the Sharm conference remains on track. Among them meetings: Face-to-face talks with Coca-Cola Chairman and CEO Muhtar Kent and Coke MENA chief Curt Ferguson, which say the two fizzy-drink providers confirm plans to invest USD 500 mn in Egypt over the course of the next three years, as we reported yesterday. A release from Ittihadiya suggested Kent said Egypt “is expected to be among the top five emerging economies worldwide.” Coca-Cola’s plant in Cairo and its regional headquarters here cover activities in 34 countries and export to a total of 43. Also meeting with the president were Siemens President and CEO Joe Kaeser; no news of new investment emerged from the Siemens meeting.

…and holds cabinet-level review on Sharm conference: The day after his Coke and Siemens meetings, El-Sisi met with Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab and the ministers of investment and international cooperation to review preparations for Sharm. The most noteworthy nugget in the statement out of Ittihadiya following the meeting: “the conference includes 22 government projects, seven private-sector projects, as well as seven public-private partnerships.

A new round of alleged leaks were released by Turkey-based Ikhwan television channel Mekameleen, which include an alleged recording stating that Tamarod was funded by the UAE. (Read in Ikhwani publication Middle East Eye)

The saga of the value-added tax continues to unfold with Finance Minister Hani Dimian saying public consultations on the draft law wrapped up following meetings with investor and business associations headed by Mohamed Farid Khamis and Mohamed El-Sewedy, Al-Mal reports. Dimian says the law will next go to the Council of Ministers’ economic group for review. Odds of this seeing the light before Sharm: zero.

Germany lifts South Sinai road travel advisory -Ambassador: Germany has lifted its travel advisory for South Sinai roads, according to Ahram Online citing a press release from the German Embassy in Cairo. “This step will push forward tourism in the red sea zone, much needed by Egypt at the moment,” according to German Ambassador Hansjörg Haber in a statement on Sunday. (Read)

The Ministry of Social Solidarity has decided to dissolve an additional 112 NGOs for links with the Ikhwan, according to Daily News Egypt. Minister Ghada Waly noted that the organizations had no functional headquarters and had been dormant for some time. (Read)

Saudi investor Sheikh Saleh Kamel urges reform of Egypt’s restrictive investment laws:Chairman of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Industry Sheikh Saleh Kamel has said that attempting to arrive at a patchwork solution for Egypt’s investment laws will not help to encourage further investment. He noted that the passing of new laws in parallel to old laws which are still in effect will create a complex legal situation for all parties involved. (Read)

Iranian media outlet PressTV is reporting that an Iranian plane landed in Yemen yesterday — the first ever to do so, following an aviation deal signed between Iran and Yemen. Although the article did not go into details as to who represented Yemen during the signing of the MOU, Reuters notes that the agreement was struck with the Houthi rebels now in control of the country.

Turkey and Qatar continue to supply Islamist rebels in Tripoli, despite a weapons embargo, according to Tobruk-based interim Interior Minister, Colonel Ahmed Ali Baraka, during a Libyan television interview as reported by the Libya Herald. (Read)

Daesh releases 19 of 220 abducted Assyrian Christians: The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group cited an Assyrian commander of the prisoner releases, some of which, according to BBC citing unspecified reports, were made in exchange for ransom. The abductions occurred on 23 February, when Daesh attacked 12 Syrian villages. (Read)

Swedish furniture giant Ikea has revealed a line of furniture products that wirelessly recharge some mobile devices. The development is hampered by three competing wireless charging standards. Ikea will produce Qi-certified chargers from Wireless Power Consortium, the standard supported by Samsung, HTC and Microsoft devices. (Read in the WSJ)

German utility RWE will go ahead with a EUR 5 bn deal to sell oil and gas unit DEA to Russian businessman Mikhail Fridman on Monday, despite the UK’s late attempt to block part of the sale, the company said on Sunday.

WORTH WATCHING

The Silly [redacted] Next to the Bed: This award-winning documentary is based on a simple premise: capturing the reactions of a retired air force officer who is the subject of a hilarious and profanity-laced recorded phone call of JFK. The late president was understandably angry to find a trumped-up story that had run in the Washington Post about the Air Force spending USD 5,000 to furnish an Air Force hospital ward at a base nearby to the vacationing Kennedys, in order to serve as a place for Jacqueline Kennedy to have her baby. (Watch, running time: 8 minutes, or just skip ahead to where the call begins at 4:21)

ENERGY, RENEWABLE ENERGY & SUBSIDY REFORM

Government to implement fuel price increases before 2015/16 fiscal year
Al Mal | 01 March 2015
A source told Al Mal the government is considering “surprising the market” by imposing an increase in fuel price before the end of the current fiscal year. The aim behind this is to avoid any sudden and unjustified price increases. The decision to implement the price increase without prior notice gained more support than a rival one that suggested tying the price increases to next year’s budget. (Read in Arabic)

Electricity ministry to build a USD 500 mn combined cycle power plant in West Assiyut
Al Mal | 01 March 2015
The Ministry of Electricity is planning on building a 500 MW combined cycle power plant in West Assiyut at a projected cost of c. USD 500 mn.. The turnkey agreement will be supervised by the Armed Forces’ Engineering Authority. Moreover, the Assiyut power station currently being built by GE and OCI will also be converted into a combined cycle system. (Read in Arabic)

Infinity Solar Systems considers building EGP 500 mn solar power station
Al Borsa | 01 March 2015
Infinity Solar Systems is currently assessing the feasibility of building a 50 MW,  EGP 500 mn solar power station. The project will be undertaken as part of a consortium including Germany’s SMA Solar Technology with funding likely to come through Bank Audi. Infinity is also in discussions with SMA about the possibility of creating an academy to provide training on the assembly and installation of solar panels. (Read in Arabic)

OIL & GAS

Petrosilah’s investments in Egypt to reach USD 100 mn by the end of July
Al Mal | 27 Feb 2015
Petrolsilah, Merlon’s subsidiary in Egypt announced that its investments in the country are expected to reach USD 100 mn by the end of July 2015. The company’s current operations focus mainly on its concession in Fayoum. According to a company statement, Petrosilah’s expansion is moving ahead as scheduled with plans to improve efficiency and increase production. (Read in Arabic)

Petrogulf increases production to 6,700 barrels per day
Amwal Al Ghad | 01 March 2015
Petrogulf Egypt announced that it has succeeded in increasing its daily production rates to 6,700 barrels as a result of an 8-month strategy to improve efficiency. The company is planning to further expand its E&P activities with a goal of reaching 7,000 barrels a day. (Read in Arabic)

Decreased oil and gas investment will not affect Egypt’s production rates
Al Masry Al Youm | 01 March 2015
A source at the Ministry of Petroleum said investments in the sector are set to decrease by 25% y-o-y in 2015/16 to USD 6 bn as a result of lower oil prices. The decrease in investment, however, is not expected to result in an overall decrease in production rates according to the source. Former Petroleum Minister, Abdallah Ghorab, suggested that spending cuts are a temporary measure. (Read in Arabic)

BASIC MATERIALS & COMMODITIES

Gas shortages driving fertilizer producers into deep losses
Al Borsa | 01 March 2015
Al Borsa reports that a shortage in the supply of natural gas to fertilizer producers has led to  heavy losses as producers continue to pay financial penalties for failing to meet export obligations. EGAS has notified AlexFert it will stop all gas supplies until 16 March with MOPCO, another producer, saying it hadn’t received any supplies since the start of the year. Fertiliser producers have only exported five thousand tons this year so far out of a contracted 30,000 tons. Meanwhile, a 30% shortfall in supply has led the Agriculture Ministry to mull new imports. (Read in Arabic here and here)

MANUFACTURING

Warner Consulting awarded contract to help upgrade 25 state-owned spinning companies
Al Mal | 01 March 2015
Warner Consulting has won a contract to help 25 state-owned spinning companies undertake financial and corporate restructuring, Al Mal was informed. This is a result of a tender put out by the Cotton and Textile Industries Holding Company last October. (Read in Arabic)

REAL ESTATE

TMGH meets with NUCA to finalize settlement
Al Mal | 01 March 2015
Talaat Moustafa Group Holdings (TMGH) met with representatives from the New Urban Communities Authority (NUCA) to finalize the settlement agreement. On the table is TMGH’s request to allow for larger areas to be used for commercial buildings in Madinaty in return for a payment of EGP 2.9 bn payable over 10 years. Also being discussed is increasing the government’s share of the land to 7% on which TMGH will build residential units with their sales’ proceeds going to the government. (Read in Arabic)

Housing ministry to build 448 homes to resettle Nubians in Wadi Karkar
Al Borsa | 01 March 2015
The housing ministry is currently working on the second and third phases of resettling Nubian communities, according to Housing Minister Moustafa Madbouly. The ministry is currently building 448 houses in Aswan’s Wadi Karkar and has already completed 97% of the second phase’s 264 houses. Both phases will cost EGP 78 mn in total. (Read in Arabic)

Majid Al Futtaim Group pledges its commitment to Egypt’s economy
Al Masry Al Youm | 1 March 2015
Majid Al Futtaim Group (MAFG) declared its long-term commitment to Egypt’s economy. The company has pledged to invest EGP 18 bn in Egypt over the next five years, in order to both develop its current assets and to establish new projects in the country. These investments will reportedly generate a total of 140,000 direct and indirect jobs. (Read in Arabic)

Egypt’s Ministry of Housing: 15 projects to be presented at the investment summit
Ajyal | 01 March 2015
According to Egypt’s Minister of Housing, Moustafa Madbouly, 12 to 15 housing-related investment projects will be presented to investors at this month’s investment summit. Located throughout the republic, these projects range from New Aswan and New Minya in Upper Egypt to the north coast of the country. Attracting investment to projects located outside of Cairo will accelerate the country’s development, according to the minister. (Read in Arabic)

TOURISM

Misr Travel seeking a EUR 2.2 mn Spanish loan to buy new buses
Al Borsa | 01 March 2015
Misr Travel is seeking part of a loan given by the Spanish government to Egypt to buy five new buses. Misr Travel is seeking EUR 2.2 mn out of EUR 22 mn loan. Negotiations are currently underway with NBE in order to secure the loan which could carry an interest rate of 6.5%. (Read in Arabic)

TELECOMS

Etisalat Egypt generates EGP 3.7 bn in profit in 2014
Al Mal | 01 March 2015
Etisalat Egypt announced it recorded profits of EGP 3.7 bn in 2014, with a top line of approximately EGP 10 bn, Al-Mal reports. The company, which is 66% owned by UAE’s Etisalat, contributed to the AED 8.9 bn netted by Etisalat I 2014. (Read in Arabic)

BANKING & FINANCE

NBE seeking two global agreements worth EUR 170 mn at the March investment summit
Amwal Al Ghad | 28 Feb 2015
The National Bank of Egypt (NBE) aims to finalize two global agreements at the March investment summit, a source at the bank is quoted as saying by Amwal Al Ghad. The two agreements, worth EUR 170 mn in total are expected to be signed with the European Investment Bank and the Agence Française de Développement. The loans will be directed towards financing SMEs and environmental projects, according to the source at NBE. (Read in Arabic)

OTHER BUSINESS NEWS OF NOTE

Dina Farms Market plans to open 15 supermarkets in 2015
Al Ahram | 01 March 2015
As part of its ongoing expansion plans, Dina Farms opened an additional branch of its line of supermarkets — Dina Farms Market — in the neighborhood of Masaken Sheraton in east Cairo. According to the company’s managing director, George Fouad, Dina Farms Market would like to establish itself as the country’s leading supermarket chain. The company has plans to open 15 additional branches throughout Egypt in 2015. The company’s aggressive expansion strategy has been largely shaped by its parent company, Qalaa Holdings’ efforts to penetrate Egypt’s food distribution sector, Ahram says. (Qalaa has announced it is considering strategic alternatives, incuding divestment, for agrifoods investments including Dina Farms and Rashidi El-Mizan.)

CPC signs MoU with AUC to provide funding for research and training to students
Zawya | 01 March 2015
CPC Egypt for Industrial Development signed an MoU with the American University in Cairo to provide research funds, sponsorships, training, and career development opportunities to the university students. The agreement’s press release notes that “CPC and AUC will share their expertise and develop research, consolidated training courses and dedicated internship programs at the established industrial park of CPC in Cairo. CPC will also offer scholarships for AUC students in the field of Architecture, Mechanical and Civil Engineering.” (Read)

Safaga port closed due to bad weather
Al Borsa | 28 Feb 2015
The Safaga Port Authority decided to close the port down on Saturday due to poor weather conditions. Conditions there became dangerous when wind speeds increased to 20 knots and wave height to over 4 meters. The port will reopen once weather conditions improve, according to the port authority. (Read in Arabic)

National Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries to assess the crocodile population in Lake Nasser
Al Borsa | 01 March 2015
The Minister of Agriculture has commissioned the National Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries to conduct a study assessing the population and locations of crocodiles in Lake Nasser. Concerns about the growing numbers of crocodiles is driving concerns regarding the state of fisheries in the lake. The agriculture ministry wants to increase the lake’s fish production from 35 thousand to 40 thousand tons annually . (Read in Arabic)

EGYPT POLITICS + ECONOMICS

Finance ministry to discuss VAT with the chambers of commerce on Tuesday
Al Borsa | 01 March 2015
The Ministry of Finance is preparing to discuss the VAT with members of the Egyptian chambers of commerce on Tuesday as part of the national dialogue process, according to Al Borsa. The government is yet to agree on a date to implement the new policy, a source notes. The chambers of commerce will look to discuss penalties on tax evaders without resorting to incarceration and will seek to work with the ministry to simplify the tax code. (Read in Arabic)

New butane gas ration cards to be issued soon –supplies minister
Al Ahram | 01 March 2015
The Ministry of Supplies is issuing a new smart card system for butane gas canisters, according to Minister Khaled Hanafy. The card system will be disbursed to those without the normal ration cards and will operate similar to the subsidies bread’s card system. The exact disbursal mechanism has not yet been agreed on, but the ministry is currently liaising with the petroleum ministry on that regard. The aim is to find a solution to the butane gas shortage problem and end the black market soon. (Read in Arabic)

Alexandria will be unable to present projects at march investment summit -Governor
Masrawy | 01 March 2015
Alexandria’s recently appointed governor, Hani El Messeiry, announced on Sunday, that his governorate will unlikely be able to present projects at next month’s investment summit in Sharm El Sheikh. The governorate is seeking to attract investments for several projects, including the development of the lighthouse, its eastern port, and Alexandria’s tourism sector. The governor attributed this inability due to the fact that many of these projects lack financial backing and are still undergoing feasibility studies. (Read in Arabic)

Saudi Arabia is Egypt’s biggest Arab investor
Al Iqtisadiya | 01 March 2015
Saudi Arabia is the largest Arab investor in Egypt’s economy, according to statement made by an Egyptian government official in Riyadh. The kingdom’s investments in Egypt amount to USD 5.7 bn, comprising 27% of total Arab investments. The UAE and Kuwait are the second and third largest investors in Egypt, with total investments of USD 4.5 bn and USD 2.7 bn, respectively. (Read in Arabic)

ON YOUR WAY OUT

Ahly Sporting Club to inaugurate third branch: Ahmed Taher, president of El Ahly Sporting Club, Egypt’s leading athletic institution, stated on Sunday that he will inaugurate the club’s third branch on 20 March. Several high-level government officials, including Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab, are set to be in attendance. Ahmed Taher is expected to attend this month’s international investment summit. (Read in Arabic)

BY THE NUMBERS

USD CBE auction (Thursday, 26 Feb): 7.5301 (unchanged since Monday, 02 Feb)
USD parallel market (Sunday, 01 March): 7.68 (-0.01 from Saturday, 28 Feb)

EGX30 (Sunday): 9,283.59 (-0.54%)
Turnover: EGP 350.9 mn (excluding special transactions worth EGP 87.4 mn)

WTI: USD 49.37 (-0.78%)
Brent: USD 62.17 (-0.66%)

TASI: 9,352.6 (+0.4%)
ADX: 4,689.2 (+0.1%)
DFM: 3,827.2 (-1.0%)
KSE Weighted Index: 452.5 (-1.2%)
QE: Market closed.
MSM: 6,580.4 (+0.3%)

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