Qatari officials have discussed investing USD 2-3 bn in the local market in talks with the Madbouly government, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait told reporters on the sidelines of Amcham’s annual general meeting yesterday, according to Al Mal. The inflows would come in the form of purchases in “company stakes and the real estate sector,” Maait said, without providing further details.

That’s only around half of the total investments pledged by Doha, which in March said it would invest USD 5 bn in Egypt to help shore up our finances amid the crisis in Ukraine — part of more than USD 22 bn of support pledged by Gulf neighbors, led by the KSA and the UAE.

There’s been plenty of promising signs that Qatari inflows are on the way – but no concrete agreements yet. A landmark visit over the weekend by Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to Cairo saw him discuss “maximizing Qatari investments in Egypt.” Trade Minister Nevine Gamea and other officials have been in Doha to drum up investment in the past few weeks, where big Qatari names including Ezdan Holding and Qatari Diar expressed their interest. That said, we’re still waiting for Doha firms to sign on the dotted line.

The gov’t still wants to slash dependency on hot money, with Finance Minister Mohamed Maait echoing during the Amcham gathering earlier statements on the necessity of boosting foreign direct investments, Reuters reported him as saying.