CBE’s EGP 100 mn subsidized lending for factories initiative has the airwaves buzzing: A Central Bank of Egypt-led initiative to give medium-sized factories access to EGP 100 bn-worth of subsidized loans, and medium-income households to EGP 50 bn in subsidized mortgages, received a lot of attention on the airwaves. Among those taking note: Yahduth Fi Misr’s Sherif Amer (watch, runtime: 1:50) and Al Hayah Al Youm’s Khaled Abou Bakr (watch, runtime: 1:00). We have the full story in this morning’s Speed Round, below.

Fewer raw material imports? SMEs consultant Hossam Farid sang the praises of the initiative for its timeliness and its potential to eliminate Egypt’s overreliance on imported raw materials, since it is aimed at medium and idle factories that often produce intermediate goods for larger ones, he told Masaa DMC’s Ramy Radwan (watch, runtime: 5:53).

More improved rankings for Egypt: Abou Bakr celebrated Egypt jumping 11 places in the 2019 UNCTAD B2C E-commerce Index (watch, runtime: 1:52). Speaking of Abou Bakr, the host had his last appearance on Al Hayah Al Youm yesterday, and will be moving to another show on the same network (watch, runtime: 8:33).

Also getting airtime yesterday: Gold futures are up for the second consecutive day after Trump overturned a prospect of reaching a trade agreement with China anytime soon, Sherif Amer reported (watch, runtime: 5:47). Demand for safe haven assets, of which gold is a prime example, is closely linked to the US-China trade war, which has dimmed global growth prospects. Amer phoned in the head of the Federation of Chambers of Commerce’ gold division head Wasfy Amin for his two cents.