Good afternoon, ladies and gents, and welcome to the end of the workweek. It’s a shockingly slow start to the month of September — so slow, in fact, that for the first time in recent history, we have no big story on the home front to speak of.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

The international press also doesn’t have a “big story” per se, with a smattering of headlines: The IMF and Sri Lanka have come to a preliminary agreement on a loan of roughly USD 2.9 bn over four years, the global lender confirmed in a statement today, as the island nation attempts to recover from its worst economic crisis in over seven decades. This comes only days after the fund and Pakistan reached an agreement on a USD 1.1 bn loan package to prevent default in Pakistan. The story is getting ink from Reuters. Also getting coverage across the international business press: The US Federal Reserve’s continued monetary tightening cycle and the expectation of a recession is fueling market concerns that the US central bank is making a “major policy error” and fueling a sell-off (CNBC | Wall Street Journal).

***

Tell us how you’re feeling about your business and the wider economy and we’ll be back with the results just in time to give you a sense of what everyone else is thinking heading into budget season.

How has 2022 been for your business? And how do you feel about what’s left of the year? Are you investing? Do you plan to hire new staff (or make cuts to your existing staff) now or in 2023? What’s the USD / EGP rate you expect to use for your 2023 budget? Where do you see your industry as a whole heading?

Make your voice heard in our Fall Reader Survey. It won’t take more than a few minutes to complete.

***

HAPPENING NOW-

The third Egypt- and UN-led regional climate roundtable is on in Santiago: The two-day event will see climate negotiators discuss climate finance with private- and public-sector stakeholders ahead of the COP27 summit in November.

** CATCH UP QUICK on the top stories from today’s EnterpriseAM:

• BNP Paribas has revised down its prediction on the size of the loan we’ll be getting from the IMF to USD 3-5 bn and expects talks with the IMF to conclude by September or October.
• Alex Medical taps advisors to weigh in on acquisition bid: Alexandria Medical Services has appointed Andersen as its financial advisor to study Tawasol Holdings and LimeVest’s bid to acquire up to 74% of the company.
• Cabinet assigned land plots for the solar and wind plants that will power the country’s first green hydrogen plant, a 100 MW facility being built by a consortium of Norway’s Scatec, Nassef Sawiris-backed ammonia producer Fertiglobe and Orascom Construction.

???? CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Our monthly list of data points to keep your eye on over the next few days and weeks:

• PMI data: Data measuring activity in Egypt’s non-oil private sector will be released on Monday, 5 September.
• Foreign reserves figures for August should be out during the first week of the month.
• Inflation figures: Inflation data for August from CAPMAS will land on Saturday, 10 September. Expect the Central Bank of Egypt to follow up on Sunday, 11 September with its inflation report.
• Interest rates: The Central Bank of Egypt’s Monetary Policy Committee meets on Thursday, 22 September to review interest rates.

The German-Arab Chamber of Industry and Commerce will commemorate 70 years of German-Egyptian business and economic ties with a gala celebration on 15 September.

National dialogue agenda drops: The National Dialogue’s board of trustees will hold a meeting on Monday, 5 September to set the agenda for the dialogue and choose rapporteurs for the involved committees.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- It’s going to be a sunny weekend: Expect daytime highs of 38°C on Friday and Saturday, and nighttime lows of 24°C.

***

WE’RE LOOKING FOR SMART, TALENTED PEOPLE to help us build some very cool new things. Today, we run two daily publications, one regional publication, five weekly industry verticals, and a monthly newsletter designed to make our readers feel just a bit smarter.

We have tons more in the pipeline — come help us build new publications. We offer the chance to work in a fast-paced newsroom on a broad range of topics and in a variety of formats. Our goal is simple: To create value for our growing community of >199k readers by telling stories that matter.

We’re looking for editors who want to run publications and teams, editors to help reporters craft stories, and talented reporters. Egyptian and foreign nationals alike are welcome to apply. So are job-switchers: If you’re an equities analyst tired of the rat race, we’re a great place to come work.

Apply directly to jobs@enterprisemea.com and mention Patrick in your subject line.

Or hit this link for more information. It’s worth it — trust us.

***