The EGX hit a 13-month high yesterday as it edged up 0.6 percent, good for a year-to-date gain of 18.1%. With our position as one of the world’s worst-performing markets at not-exactly-distant memory, it’s a pleasant milestone to note — even though it will all come tumbling down if we fail to secure a bailout package from the IMF…

Speaking of which: The Ismail government announced a sharp increase in electricity prices yesterday (more on that below), showing movement on the reform agenda as word emerged that negotiators have apparently proposed an 18-month reform program to the IMF. Citing a senior government official in a piece geared for domestic consumption, Al-Masry Al-Youm noted that Egypt’s reform agenda, which is being reviewed by the IMF and other finance institutions, is set in stone and will not change — regardless of the political consequences. The source goes on to note that we’re not alone: devaluation has been implemented successfully in other places. The official continues to spout the government line that no organization has pressured it to accept key elements of the program. The story is making international headlines after being picked up by other domestic press outlets and rising to the attention of the Associated Press, which perhaps bangs the drum a bit too hard in claiming there’s daylight between the two sides.

The news came as the administration prepare to open talks with the World Bank on the second tranche of its USD 3 bn in budget support, government sources tell Al Borsa. The newspaper’s sources expect the first tranche of the loan, which was signed back in December, to be received soon after the House of Representatives ratified the agreement. Finance Minister Amr El Garhy said last month that he expects the first tranche to arrive during the second quarter of the FY2016-17 fiscal year (October-December), though he noted that the funding hinges in part on the House passing the value-added tax legislation.