Daylight savings time to be scrapped again? IFC to invest up to USD 2 bn in Egypt infrastructure, power. Headline inflation advances nearly 1 ppt. Abraaj looking to acquire El-Shamadan. Capital Cairo contract to be inked “within days.”

WHAT WE’RE TRACKING TODAY

Polls opened in Sudan’s presidential elections, with 16 contenders challenging incumbent Omar Al-Bashir, who is widely expected to extend his 25-year rule. The New York Times and Al-Ahram have more, depending on your mood this morning.

WHAT WE’RE TRACKING THIS WEEK

Emaar Chairman Mohamed Alabbar could face questions at the company’s AGM tomorrow over whether his involvement in outside businesses — including Capital City Partners, which will build Egypt’s new administrative capital — are detracting from his focus on the UAE’s highest-profile developer. Reuters has more, picking up on a lengthy interview with Arabian Business published on Sunday.

The World Travel & Tourism Council Global Summit 2015 kicks off tomorrow and runs through Thursday in Madrid. Visit the official website here.

Arab Fund for Arts and Culture Film Week 2015 takes place 15-22 April
(Wednesday-Wednesday). Find the schedule of films on AFAC’s website here and directions to Zawya Cinema in downtown Cairo here.

LAST NIGHT’S TALK SHOWS

Egypt’s talk show hosts took a break from politics and bad news last night. They celebrated one of Egypt’s favorite holidays, Sham El Nessim, with a celebrity lineup that included Lebanese singer Pascale Machaalani with Lamees El Hadidy and belly dancer / actress Lucy with Youssef El Housseiny.

Al Qahera Al Yawm’s Rania Badawi interviewed writer / Egyptologist Dr. Wasim Al Sisi, who discussed the ancient Egyptian holiday of Sham El Nessim. “Shamo is the ancient Egyptian word for renewal or rebirth; the term was used to refer to the start of the summer harvest. Eggs symbolized the origin of life, the ancient Egyptians colored and wrote their wishes for the year on the eggs,” said Al Sisi.

“So egg coloring is something that we passed on to the entire world?” asked Badawi.

“Of course, we taught the world the meaning of life.”

“So what happened to us?”

“2,500 years of colonialism happened to us.”

Al Sisi also gave his recommendation for the safe consumption of feseekh, the smelly, salted fish that is an Egyptian staple on Sham El Nessim: “Buy it from a reliable source, store it in a glass container and smother it in lemon juice for at least 12 hours.”

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SPEED ROUND

IFC plans USD 1.2 bn – USD 2 bn investment in Egyptian infrastructure, power over the next four years: The World Bank’s development arm, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) plans to invest between USD 1.2-2 bn in Egypt over the next four years, including around the Suez Canal, its regional director told Reuters on Thursday. “I have noticed a huge change in the way private investors are looking at Egypt and the government is on the right track to make it easier for investors to come in and add value by improving the investment climate,” he said to Reuters. On Thursday, the World Bank approved USD 400 mn in funding for conditional cash transfer programs that would benefit up to 1.5 mn families living below the poverty line; Ahram Online has details.

The signing of contracts for The Capital Cairo is expected “within days,” Housing Minister Mostafa Madbouly was quoted as saying by state-run news agency MENA, adding that preliminary designs to extend the state’s water and sewage infrastructure to city limits are complete, according to Amwal Al Ghad.

Speaking of which: ** Save us from the tyranny of the calendar: Name the New Capital. ** Enterprise has opened nominations for naming the newly proposed administrative capital, as we’ve nearly exhausted the calendar while naming the rest of Egypt. In fact, a calendar-based name would be just about the only thing worse than calling it The Capital Cairo.  The best nominations will be shortlisted and put up for a straw poll on our website soon. We’ll keep nominations open until this coming Thursday. Shoot us your suggestions on editorial@enterprise.presswith the subject line #downwiththecalendar. (h/t Hassan B. for the contest idea and Hussein B. for the hashtag).

Headline inflation rates in March increased to 11.51% from 10.56% in February mainly on food and energy price increases, driven in large part by the cost of vegetables and butane gas canisters. Food price inflation rose 2.4% m-o-m to 9.2%. Core inflation rates also inched upwards to 7.21% in March from 7.15% in February.

After losing out to Kellogg in its bid to acquire Bisco Misr, Abraaj Capital has begun the due diligence process to acquire a majority stake in biscuit producer El-Shamadan, Al Mal reports. Planet IB is sell-side advisor and initial estimates value the company, founded in 1978, at between EGP 800 mn to EGP 1 bn. Sources said the due diligence process is expected to take three months. Meanwhile, Abraaj announced in a release on Monday that it has closed its third Sub-Saharan African fund (Abraaj Africa Fund III) at USD 990 mn, which will focus on “consumer goods and services, consumer finance, and resource and infrastructure services in the core geographies of Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, South Africa and Kenya.” Last Thursday, the private equity group announced that it has finalized its investment in Saudi fast-food restaurant chain Kudu.

Following Shell’s deal to acquire BG Group, Shell’s total natural gas production in Egypt will account for 35% of all of the country’s output. Sources added to Al Mal that BG’s investment plans in Egypt will not be affected by the transaction as the new corporate entity that will be formed is still bound by agreements signed by its predecessors. The source added that Rashpetco will remain the company operating as Shell / BG’s JV in Egypt with EGPC. Still, executives at Shell Egypt and BG Group Egypt currently await the details on how to proceed following the two companies’ merger, Akhbar El Yom was informed.

MOVES- Deutsche Bank appointed Javeed Ameen as Middle East and Africa COO. Amin has been the COO in Saudi Arabia since 2008 and replaces Phillippe Vollot who has now been appointed Global Head of Regulatory Relationship in Frankfurt.

The White House issued a statement on Saturday condemning the life sentence of Mohamed Soltan, a young man who volunteered in the Rabaa sit-in and dual American-Egyptian national. The statement calls for his immediate release, noting his deteriorating health, which is a result of his hunger strike. Soltan’s received his sentence alongside the death sentences of 14 other defendants, including his father Salah Soltan as well as the former Supreme Guide of the Ikhwan Mohamed Badie.

National poll on daylight saving time? There is now some uncertainty regarding whether the clocks in Egypt will be pushed forward by one hour on 1 May as previously reported, as Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab has tasked the Cabinet’s thinktank the IDSC to conduct a poll to determine Egyptians’ opinion on the matter. The prime minister has also called upon the media conduct similar polls. (Read)

EgyptAir 14th most reliable globally: Travel website WanderBat ranked U.S. and global airlines on on-time performance, cost to check bags and average fleet age, ranking EgyptAir number 14, one slot ahead of Etihad. Emirates ranks second, Qatar first. The story is getting wide play after being picked up by CBS News.

Egypt ranks #89 on the Social Progress Indicator, ahead of China, Iran, India and Kenya. Topping the list (which tracks 52 indicators — from crime levels to literacy rates and gender equality — that reflect whether a country is providing essential needs to its citizens and opportunities for people to improve their lot in society) are Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Iceland, New Zealand and Canada. Full rankings here (Globe & Mail), full website here, drill-down into Egypt here.

Female journalist gets flak online for taking son to work, receives support from Ittihadiya:Lamia Hamdin, a journalist for ONTV, received both criticism and praise after images of her taking her son with her to job while she conducted field interviews exploded on social media. Neither Hamdin nor her son appeared in any of the TV shots, but were captured on cellphone cameras by onlookers. “Hamdin told BuzzFeed News that she was “shocked by the reaction” online. She said that her son had been released from school early that day, and she had nowhere else to take him.” Al Watan, quoting Hamdin, says that she has received a supportive phone call from the President’s team.

Ajnad Misr confirm killing of their leader by Egyptian security forces: Following reports last week that Egypt’s security forces had killed the leader of Islamist terror group Ajnad Misr, the group itself confirmed the killing of their leader on their Twitter account last Thursday, as well as noting that Izzeddin al-Masri has succeeded Hammam Mohamed Attia. The group claimed responsibility for the placing of an IED on 15 May bridge last week that killed one police officer and wounded two civilian bystanders. (Read)

Sunday witnessed a shuffle of top military commanders, Ahram Online reports, quoting Al Ahram. The changes include the posts for head of military intelligence, commander of the second army, and command of the navy.
President Abdelfattah El Sisi has appointed Mohamed Erfan Gamal, a long-serving official  at state anti-corruption watchdog the Administrative Control Authority (ACA) as its new head, replacing outgoing Mohamed Omar Heiba, who held the position since 2012, Ahram Online reports.

Egypt, Ethiopia, Sudan select consultancy firms on Ethiopian dam: Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan selected on Thursday two European consultancy firms to carry out technical studies on Ethiopia’s GERD, according to an SIS release. The two firms are French consultancy BRL Group and Dutch applied research institute Deltares.

Draft customs law to be completed in 2 weeks: The draft of the new customs law will be completed within the next two weeks and will include terms addressing customs exemptions, according to Magdy Abdel Aziz, Head of the Customs Authority as reported by DNE on Monday.

Abdul Latif Jameel Energy and Environmental Services, dual-headquartered in Jeddah and Dubai, haveacquired Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV) from private equity firm Denham Capital for an undisclosed sum, according to a release on Wednesday. FRV has a number of solar power plant projects in the pipeline spread throughout the world, including a 60 MWdc plant in Egypt.

NUCA budget doubled to EGP 28 bn in FY 2015/2016: The budget for the New Urban Communities Authority (NUCA) will double during FY 2015/2016 to EGP 28 bn, according to an announcement by Minister of Housing Mostafa Madbouly on Wednesday. The increase is set to be directed to expand participation in public-private partnership initiatives, according to the minister. (Read)

Smartphone sales down due to USD shortage, Samsung says. Sales of smartphones in Egypt slowed down in 1Q2015, according to the head of handset sales at Samsung Egypt, attributing the slowdown to the foreign currency shortage. Samsung Egypt controls 60% of the smartphone sales in Egypt, Amwal Al-Ghadreports.
Lifting Iran sanctions could lower WTI / Brent prices by USD 5 – USD 15 bbl -report: Last Tuesday, the U.S. Energy Information Administration released its Short-term Energy Summer Fuels Outlook, which notes with regard to the possible lifting of sanctions on Iran: “Lifting sanctions could substantially change the STEO forecast for oil supply, demand, and prices by allowing a significantly increased volume of Iranian barrels to enter the market. If and when sanctions are lifted, the baseline forecast for world crude oil prices in 2016 could be reduced USD 5- USD 15/barrel (bbl) from the level presented in this STEO.” (Download the full report here)

Worth reading in light of Egypt’s constitutional imperative to spend on education: In a long read by The Atlantic, it’s noted that while Brazil spends c.20% of its national budget on education, the country still ranks 105 out of 122 countries on the quality of its education. The focus of the article is on the fact that students coming from privileged backgrounds are those who end up qualifying for merit-based free tuition at the state’s top federal universities, while their less-advantaged cohorts end up paying for the cost of their higher education.  (Read)

Goldman Sachs’ 2014 annual report is out, highlighting four trends shaping markets and economies. It’s not particularly deep reading (in between doses of corporate pablum), but the verticals are spot-on: technology driving innovation, the new energy landscape, interconnected markets and industries, and global capital markets fueling entrepreneurship. Hit the landing page here.

Startups will challenge banks, says JP Morgan Chase’s Dimon. Speaking of 2014 annual reports, JP Morgan Chase’s chief writes in his letter to shareholders this year: “There are hundreds of startups with a lot of brains and money working on various alternatives to traditional banking. The ones you read about most are in the lending business, whereby the firms can lend to individuals and small businesses very quickly and — these entities believe — effectively by using Big Data to enhance credit underwriting. They are very good at reducing the ‘pain points’ in that they can make loans in minutes, which might take banks weeks. We are going to work hard to make our services as seamless and competitive as theirs. And we also are completely comfortable with partnering where it makes sense.” See page 29 of the full letter, here in pdf.

GE will divest GE Capital and focus on becoming a “pure industrial company,” the global financial press reported, following an announcement made Friday. Proceeds will be used in part to fund a USD 50 bn share buyback. CNBC and the WSJ have more.

LafargeHolcim, the product of the USD 44 bn merger of France’s Lafarge and Switzerland’s Holcim, will be headed by long-serving Lafarge exec Eric Olsen, the WSJ reports. Nassef Sawiris, the second-largest investor in Lafarge and a director of the company, has reportedly been a strong proponent of the transaction

‘Could Isis’s ‘cyber caliphate’ unleash a deadly attack on key targets?’ — The Guardian picks up on a warning from the U.K.’s new spy chief that civilized countries are in a “technology arms race” with Daesh. With quotes from the always-plugged-in JM Berger.

The WSJ‘s Saturday Essay this week is ‘Would New Borders Mean Less Conflict in the Middle East?’ by Yaroslav Trofimov, a Mideast correspondent who often files from Cairo. Blaming everything on Sykes-Picot is the stuff of honors history seminars the world around, but Trofimov does a decent job outlining the background for the uninitiated.

Webby Awards: Voting is underway and will be open for the next 11 days for the 2015 Webby Awards, honoring the best in digital media, namely websites, apps, video and social media. Readers may sign up hereto cast their votes. Some of the nominees in categories we’re interested in seem a bit out there, while other deserving nominees are snubbed altogether. For example, Playbook by Politico doesn’t even get an honorary mention in the category of Email Newsletters, which is odd, but can only be explained away with the email’s lack of interest in graphics. Perusing the nominees, one gets the impression that the category is populated solely by newsletters that are sent to illiterate people, as they have all opted for the 3-5 story-maximum format. The candidates for both short and long-form comedy videos are likewise disappointing, except perhaps for Between Two Ferns. Meanwhile, relegated to the ghetto of “Experimental and Weird” is the only interesting comedy video nominated in any category, namely ‘Too Many Cooks,’ (NSFW, Watch, running time: 11:11), which is still nowhere near as good as ‘Unedited Footage of a Bear’ by the same channel, which we featured in our 8 March issue. (Watch, running time: 10:28)

Chinese firm building ‘New York of Africa’: Modderfontein New City project, a USD 7 bn mini-city on the outskirts of Johannesburg, South Africa: “Chinese investor Shanghai Zendai heads the 1,600-hectare development called the Modderfontein New City project. It is set to cost as much as USD 7 bn and, when completed, will become a mini city with more than 100,000 residents. According to the developer’s founder, the aim is to turn the mini metropolis into the ‘New York of Africa’.” (Read)

PLANET TURKEY: Turkey has recalled its envoy to the Vatican following comments made by Pope Francis on the Armenian genocide at a service in Rome on Sunday where he had particularly strong words for Turkey’s official state position of denial: “Concealing or denying evil is like allowing a wound to keep bleeding without bandaging it,” the Pope said, as reported by the BBC. The Pope’s comments come ahead of the 100th memorial of the Armenian genocide on 24 April. Turkey has maintained that the estimated 1-1.5 mn deaths stemming from the Armenian genocide in 1915 are grossly inflated and were the result of conflict sparked by World War I. A number of countries and most historians agree, however, that a systematic massacre and forced marching to desert areas of the Armenian minority in the then-Ottoman Empire took place, at a time when the Ottoman Empire was in its death throes. The Economist gives some context, pointing out that while this is certainly not the first time a pope, or even this Pope, has made comments about the Armenian genocide, the Economist suggests that the severity of the Turkish response is out of frustration of their failed lobbying efforts to get Pope Francis to drop the use of the word ‘genocide.’ The issue is highly contentious among some, with U.S. President Barack Obama having vacillated over calling it a genocide, more recently referring to in an Armenian-language euphemism. However, the Daily Beast notes that Turkey will be watching anxiously to see if President Obama changes his rhetoric this year. It’s a shame thatrumors of Egypt acceding to recognition of the genocide during Adly Mansour’s presidency proved to baseless.

Yemen updates: There is currently a war of words between the political leadership in Tehran and Riyadh, with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei alleging in a tweet on Thursday that the Saudi-led military strikes in Yemen amount to “a genocide that can be prosecuted in int’l courts.” Iran has also taken the step of suspending all Umrah travel to Saudi Arabia, The Washington Post’s WorldViews blog notes. Saudi Arabia has dismissed Iran’s calls for a ceasefire on Sunday: “How can Iran call for us to stop the fighting in Yemen?” Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal said, as quoted by NBC News. “We came to Yemen to help the legitimate authority, and Iran is not in charge of Yemen.” On Monday, Iran called for a new government in Yemen, which it says it can assist with its formation, Reuters reports. Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi appointed his former prime minister Khaled Bahah as vice president, a move which has already been rejected by Houthi rebels.

WORTH READING

‘Is Iran outmaneuvering Saudi Arabia in Yemen?’: Mohammad Ali Shabani in Al-Monitor argues that Saudi Arabia and its allies are being bogged down into a “quagmire” in Yemen to no clear gain: “Both the Saudis and the Emiratis have clearly expressed annoyance with the Turkish-Pakistani decision to abstain from joining the war. Their irritation is understandable. The Houthis are still there, Saudi Arabia is losing troops, the idea of a united Sunni front is collapsing and Riyadh is on a trajectory to end up stuck in a costly war against Iranian ghosts — all at an insignificant cost to Tehran.” (Read)

‘Yemen’s President: The Houthis Must Be Stopped’: In counterargument to the above is an op-ed published in Sunday’s New York Times by Yemeni President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who writes “Two weeks ago, Yemen was on the brink of the abyss. The unprecedented level of Arab and international support brought us back from the edge … Having a hostile government in a nation bordering the Bab al-Mandeb strait — the highly trafficked shipping lane leading to the Suez Canal — is in no nation’s interest.” (Read, paywall)

At the beginning of the month, Mada Masr published an interview with military expert Robert Springborg, who argues that the newly revised U.S. military aid package to Egypt is in the interest of both nations, and rather than taking a doom and gloom outlook as nearly all other observers (other than his brief caveat that the only losers in the deal are Egyptian civil society organizations) he states that the newly directed counterterrorism assistance is aiding President Abdel Fattah El Sisi in his drive to modernize the Egyptian military. (Read)

***
A MESSAGE FROM PHAROS HOLDING

Pharos Holding Named 5th Best Brokerage House in Egypt by Traded Volume
Pharos Holding is pleased to announce that its securities arm ranked among the top brokerage houses in Egypt this month, according to a press release from the Egyptian Stock Exchange. The firm came in fifth in terms of value traded in its main market Egypt, with transactions totaling EGP 1.5 bn and a volume of 138.5 mn shares — representing 4.6% of the total value traded. Pharos Holding also came in at first place in terms of transactions executed by Gulf Arabs, with a total traded value of EGP 289 mn and a volume of 23.8 mn shares — representing 17.04% of total traded by Arab investors.

To learn more about Pharos Holding, please visit our website.
***

EGYPT IN THE NEWS

The lead story on Egypt in the foreign press over the weekend was news of the attacks on soldiers and civilians in Sinai, followed closely by news and world reactions to the latest batch of death sentences, as well as the life-sentence of Mohamed Soltan, an American-Egyptian dual national. With regard to the latter, The Washington Post notes a statement released by U.S. State Department acting spokesperson Marie Hart who which stated: “The U.S. government is deeply disappointed in the Egyptian court’s decision in the case of U.S. citizen Mohamed Soltan … We remain deeply concerned about Mr. Soltan’s health and detention. The United States reiterates our call for the release of Mr. Soltan on humanitarian grounds, and we urge the Government of Egypt to redress this verdict.”

Police arrest journalist following publication of articles that were critical of the police: The MOI announced on Sunday in a statement on its Facebook page that Hussein Abdel Halim, a journalist for privately-owned tabloid Al-Dostour, was arrested on Saturday, ostensibly on charges going back to 2003, asreported by AP. However, the statement goes on to mention recent articles Abdel Halim had published that were critical of the police, claiming the articles were based “on arguments and assumptions of which some are still being looked into by the prosecution. He aimed to distort the police institution among the public opinion, and neglect the accomplishments, as well as the fact that many police personnel have died to protect the homeland,” as reported by DNE.

‘The great Egyptian gas giveaway?’: Islamist news outlet Middle East Eye ran a story about BP’s recent USD 12 bn deal in Egypt, which reportedly allows the company to keep the entirety of its profits less taxes and royalties. The story was later picked up by Al Jazeera and Yahoo Maktoob News.

Two very negative pieces have been published following an announcement that the state budget will not fund the proposed administrative capital, one in the aforementioned Middle East Eye titled ‘Confusion regarding Egypt’s new capital after Sisi announces lack of funds‘ as well as The Daily Beast’s ‘Egypt Says ‘Show Me the Money‘.’ The Daily Beast’s piece notes: “On Wednesday of this week, Sisi quietly announced that the Egyptian state will not allocate any funds to the project, which will now be funded entirely using FDI. Critics say this is a way for the government to distance itself from the project, perhaps before abandoning it entirely.” El Sisi has previously stated that the project would be entirely funded by private and foreign capital, with the state’s responsibility extending only to bringing infrastructure up to city limits.

‘Egypt’s avian flu surge lacks an explanation’: The New York Times notes that Egypt has now taken the title as the country with the most human cases of H5N1 avian flu since the virus’ first discovery 20 years ago. “Nearly all cases still appear to involve contact with poultry; the disease has long been endemic in birds throughout Egypt, where many households have small poultry flocks. Transmission from birds to humans continues to be sporadic, the W.H.O. said.” (Read)

WORTH WATCHING

Home Depot released a bizarre new television commercial Hillary Clinton released the official announcement of her 2016 candidacy for the U.S. presidency on Sunday through a tweet with the following video as an attachment. (Watch, running time: 2:27)

Saturday Night Live, aware that the Clinton campaign was expected to announce the candidacy on Sunday, preempted them by performing a skit about it one night before. A segment of the skit is available here, running time: 43 seconds.

While many were excited about Darrell Hammond reprising his impersonation of former president Bill Clinton, no one, of course, holds a candle to the late Phil Hartman’s portrayal of Bill Clinton, running time: 5:53.

ENERGY, RENEWABLE ENERGY & SUBSIDY REFORM

Arab Contractors allies with Rosatom to construct the Daba’a nuclear power plant
Amwal Al Ghad | 09 April 2015
The Arab Contractors have announced their entering into an alliance with Russia’s Rosatom to construct the nuclear power plant in Daba’a. The investment cost of the project is estimated at USD 8 bn. Arab Contractors will be required to provide the basic constructions to the plant as well as the concrete foundations. (Read in Arabic)

OIL & GAS

Egypt to continue to issue E&P tenders in the Mediterranean
El Watan | 08 April 2015
Egypt will continue to issue E&P tenders in the Mediterranean regardless of any international demarcation disputes, an EGPC source told El Watan. The government has 30 blocks that clearly lie within Egypt’s maritime borders, the source noted, and the government will continue tendering them off in the aims to reach natural gas self-sufficiency by 2020. EGAS is negotiating E&P deals in Egypt’s Mediterranean EEZ with three IOCs, although the source noted that the IOCs remain concerned with an agreement’s enforceability given the absence of an elected parliament. (Read in Arabic)

MIDOR signs EGP 1.4 bn deal for its refinery expansion with UOP
Al Mal | 09 April 2015
MIDOR signed a deal for its planned EGP 1.4 bn refinery expansion with U.S.-based engineering firm UOP. The deal tasks UOP with preparing the engineering designs for the project, which aims to increase the production capacity of the refinery from 100,000 to 160,000 bbl per day. MIDOR’s chairman said that after the expansion is complete, MIDOR’s refining capacity is set to increase to 245,000 tons of butane gas and 1.3 mn tons of high-octane fuel, 3.2 mn tons of European-standard diesel, and 570,000 tons of coal. (Read in Arabic)

Beach Energy plans to sell Egyptian assets
4-Traders | 09 April 2015
Beach Energy intends to sell its interest shares in oil and gas assets in Egypt. The divestment will allow the company to shed non-core assets and focus on operations in Australia. Beach Energy owns 20% interest in North Shadwan concession in the Gulf of Suez, 22% interest in the Abu Sennan concession in Abu Gharadig Basin of the Western Desert, and 15% interest in the Mesaha Area concession. (Read in Arabic)

E&P agreements in Egypt not affected by RWE’s sale of Dea
Al Mal | 12 April 2015
Sources said RWE’s sale of its oil and gas arm Dea will not affect existing E&P agreements in Egypt. The company will operate in Egypt as Dea Egypt with its JV, the Suez Oil Company (SUCO), will continue operating the concession at Dessouk without delays or alterations to the signed contract. (Read in Arabic)

BASIC MATERIALS & COMMODITIES

Russian bans Egyptian potatoes
Al Borsa | 10 April 2015
Russian authorities have blocked potato shipments from Egypt, claiming a recent shipment was infected with brown rot. The ban went into effect on 9 April. (Read in Arabic)

HEALTHCARE

EGP 500,000 to be spent on health care improvements in Luxor
Al Borsa | 8 April 2015
A high-ranking state official in Luxor said to Al Borsa that the governorate has allocated EGP 500,000 for the development of its hospitals. The money will reportedly be used to provide the hospitals with modern medical equipment, drugs, and furniture. (Read in Arabic)

EGYPT POLITICS + ECONOMICS

Holding company for Kuwaiti investors in Egypt to be created
Al Borsa | 11 April 2015
A holding company to control Kuwaiti investments in Egypt will be created, according to Kuwait’s ambassador to Cairo, Salem Al-Zamanan. This, the ambassador believes, will encourage further Kuwaiti investments in Egypt and create more job opportunities. Al-Zamanan added that the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation will open a regional office in Cairo to expand its presence regionally. (Read in Arabic)

Egypt to look at establishing water policy research center in Rwanda
Al Mal | 12 April 2015
In a meeting between Egyptian Ambassador to Rwanda Nemira Negm and Rwandan Minister of Natural Resources Vincent Biruta to seek further cooperation efforts in irrigation and mineral resource development, the two sides discussed a potential Egyptian Water Policy Research Center in Rwanda. The research center will study methods to connect the Rwanda Victoria Lake and the Mediterranean Sea via the Nile River transportation. (Read in Arabic)

EGP 425 mn allocated for informal settlements in new urban development budget -minister
Al Mal | 13 April 2015
Minister of Housing, Utilities and Urban Development announced that EGP 425 mn will be allocated for developing informal settlements as part of the budget for total budget of EGP 28 bn for the new 2016-2017 fiscal year. The plan also includes implement Phase 2 of development in the city of New Assiut and New Menya. New sewer and drainage system plans will be implemented in the New Borg Al-Arab and Al-Nobaryeh. (Read in Arabic)

China signs USD 600 mn cooperation agreement to construct railway project in Egypt
Youm7 | 13 April 2015
According to Reuters on Monday, a Chinese Railway company announced a USD 600 mn deal to build a rail project in Egypt. There was no immediate comment from any Egyptian officials, however. During the March Economic Development Conference in Sharm El-Sheikh, Chinese Minister of Commerce and Trade had announced that China sought to cooperate in industrial and infrastructural projects. President Abdelfattah El-Sisi visited China last December to increase Chinese investment opportunities in Egypt. (Read in Arabic)

Turkey accounts for 27% of Egyptian chemical exports last February -report
Al Masry Al Youm | 13 April 2015
According to a Chemical & Fertilizers Council report, Turkey tops the list of countries receiving Egyptian chemical and fertilizer exports at 27%, or USD 30 mn. The report stated that Greece comes in at number 2 on the list, receiving 11% of Egyptian exports at around USD 12.5 mn. Saudi Arabia comes in at third, receiving about 10% of Egyptian chemical exports at about USD 11 mn. Belgium and Italy each account for  % of chemical exports (USD 9 mn), while Iraq, Spain and Kenya account for 7% of exports. Morocco came last on the list, account for 6 % of chemical exports at USD 7 mn. (Read in Arabic)

ON YOUR WAY OUT

Two bomb attacks in north Sinai kill 13, wound dozens on Sunday: A roadside bomb on Sunday in North Sinai killed six soldiers and wounded two others, followed by a car bombing at a police station in Al-Arish, killing seven people and wounding at least 44 others. Sinai Daesh affiliate Ansar Beit Al Maqdis, now referring to themselves as Sinai province, have claimed responsibility for the attacks. (Read) Minister of Social Solidarity Ghada Waly says her ministry will grant EGP 10,000 to the families of all the victims of the bombings. (Read in Arabic)

On Sunday, during church masses celebrating Coptic Easter, two IEDs exploded in front of two churches: one in Zagazig and the other in Sharqeya, with some property damage but no casualties reported. (Read) On Monday, one police corporal and four civilian bystanders were injured in a drive-by shooting in front of Archangel Raphael in Alexandria by unknown assailants, as reported by Ahram Online.

AMAY is reporting that Russia Today broadcast what it claims is footage of an explosion at Media Production City last night in which two towers were blown up, causing power outages in the surrounding area. (Read in Arabic, with an RT-branded video embedded in the link)

40,000 Egyptians die aged 15-59 die of Hepatitis C each year, public opinion research center Baseera notes, according to Al Borsa.

Former Al-Jazeera English Cairo bureau chief Mohamed Fahmy has signed a book deal with Random House Canada, the AP reports. Fahmy remains free on bail in Egypt but subject to a travel ban while being re-tried on charges of supporting a terror group and harming Egypt’s image. Meanwhile, Canada’s PostMedia newspapers are carrying reports of a tweet from Fahmy saying he believes it possible the courtmay drop the charges of terrorism and fabrication of news.

Egypt’s penal code has been amended to allow for a maximum penalty of a life sentence for the digging or use of smuggling tunnels in Sinai, according to state news agency MENA on Sunday, as reported by Reuters.

BY THE NUMBERS

USD CBE auction (last sale Thursday, 09 April): 7.5301 (unchanged since Monday, 02 Feb)
USD parallel market (Thursday, 09 April): 7.65 (unchanged from Wednesday, 08 April)

EGX30 (Thursday): 8,892 (+1.18%)
Turnover: EGP 333.5 mn (41% below the 90-day average)

WTI: USD 52.32 (+0.79%)
Brent: USD 58.33 (+0.69%)

(Monday, 13 April):
TASI: 9,041 (+0.89%)
ADX: 4,589 (+0.63%)
DFM: 3,775 (-0.79%)
KSE Weighted Index: 427.78 (+0.25%)
QE: 11,819 (-1.36%)
MSM: 6,265 (flat, -0.07%)