The red-hot oil market is set to pour an extra USD 1.3 tn into the coffers of Gulf sovereign wealth funds over the next four years, Jihad Azour, IMF director for the Middle East and North Africa, told the Financial Times. The flood of revenues will further increase the financial power of the region’s sovereign wealth funds — the Public Investment Fund, the Qatar Investment Authority, and Abu Dhabi’s three funds among them — at a time when much of the rest of the world is facing recession and falling asset prices. Azour says that the region’s oil exporters should use the new revenues to “invest in the future” by developing their tech capabilities and transitioning to green energy.

Investors are growing wary of the summer rally + expect a volatile September: “Traders at Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase have warned clients in recent days that the bounce in shares is not underpinned by confidence the surge can last,” the Financial Times writes. US financial markets have rallied in recent weeks from one of their worst years on record as rising inflation and the war in Ukraine sent stocks and bonds tumbling.

Wake us up when September ends: The month is known for its bad average return for the S&P 500, with the index tending to fall around 1%. It is also the only month during which stocks drop more often than they rise, Bloomberg writes.

That rally stumbled on Friday when US stocks suffered their biggest daily loss since June after Fed officials renewed hardline comments on the need to fight inflation. The S&P 500 saw its first weekly loss in five weeks after falling 1.3% on Friday while the Nasdaq lost 1.9%.

ALSO IN PLANET FINANCE NEWS-

• Noon to buy online fashion platform Namshi: E-commerce company Noon will acquire Emirati real estate developer Emaar’s online fashion platform Namshi for USD 335.2 mn. (Statement, pdf)
• More bad news for Europe’s gas supply: The Nord Stream 1 pipeline will close for three days of unscheduled maintenance at the end of the month, state energy giant Gazprom said over the weekend. Moscow has already cut flows through the vital pipeline to just 20% of capacity, blaming issues with turbines. (Statement)
• Another ominous sign from China’s tanking real estate market: China’s largest developer Country Garden expects its earnings to have fallen as much as 70% during 1H 2022, amid an escalating crisis in the country’s property market (Financial Times)

THE CLOSING BELL-

The EGX30 rose 0.4% at Thursday’s close on turnover of EGP 1.28 bn (37.7% above the 90-day average). Foreign investors were net sellers. The index is down 15.5% YTD.

In the green: Abu Qir Fertilizers (+4.4%), Ibnsina Pharma (+3.2%) and Mopco (+3.1%).

In the red: Orascom Construction (-6.2%), Alexandria Containers (-3.2%) and GB Auto (-1.2%).