Good afternoon, wonderful people. The final week of September promises to be both eventful and interesting, if today is any indication.

THE BIG STORY TODAY

SFE plans to close USD 6 bn stake sales by mid-2023: The Sovereign Fund of Egypt’s (SFE) expects to close its USD 6 bn program to sell strategic stake sales to foreign sovereign funds by mid-2023, Planning Minister and SFE head Hala El Said told Bloomberg. One of the three Siemens / Orascom Construction / Elsewedy combined-cycle power plants — which the SFE had been planning to sell a stake in since 2019 — will also be among USD 3 bn-worth of assets that will be transferred to the SFE’s newly-established pre-IPO fund in the next few weeks, El Said said.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

The Philippines is bracing for Noru, a category 3 typhoon, by evacuating coasts, canceling trips by sea and air, and suspending schools and work. The storm was branded a super typhoon and is now en route to the country’s main and most populous island, Luzon, where the capital Manila is located.

The story is everywhere in the international press: Associated Press | Reuters | Bloomberg | The Washington Post

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

• CBE reaches for another tool in the toolbox: Against expectations, the Central Bank of Egypt left interest rates unchanged on Thursday, opting instead to tighten financial conditions by bumping up its reserve requirement for all banks to 18% from 14% currently.
• Talks for an IMF facility could wrap in another month or two, with the size of the loan set to be agreed during the final stage of negotiations, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said.
• Egypt wants to double natgas receipts: Egypt wants to increase revenues from natural gas exports to USD 1 bn per month from USD 500 mn currently “in the coming period,” Maait also said.

*** It’s Inside Industry day — your weekly briefing of all things industrial in Egypt. Inside Industry focuses each Sunday on what it takes to turn Egypt into a manufacturing and export powerhouse, ranging from initial investment and planning to product distribution, through to land allocation to industrial processes, supply chain management, labor, automation and technology, inputs and exports, regulation and policy.

In today’s issue: We look at how Egypt’s strategy to localize electronics manufacturing is panning out since it was launched back in 2015, following a string of commitments from international companies to invest in local assembly and production.

???? CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Is the Madbouly government holding an economic conference this week? After two weeks of chatter about a three-day economic conference at the end of the month, we’re still none the wiser about what the plan is — or whether it’s even taking place. A number of government officials (here, here, here) have appeared on the airwaves in recent days to talk about the agenda — from what we know, the government’s privatization strategy and import substitution industrialization would be two of the main topics of discussion — but key details such as date and location are TBD.

Our friends at HSBC are hosting an energy transition webinar series this Tuesday through Thursday (27-29 September). The series will look at the “latest climate analysis in relation to the global energy market and transition to net zero” in six different sessions covering energy security, what is required to ensure the success of COP27, financing and investment needs for the energy transition, and the scaling up of renewables in the region, among other topics. You can register for the series here.

A Spanish business delegation will be in town this Tuesday and Wednesday (27-28 September) for the Egypt-Spain Multilateral Partnership Forum, organized by the Spanish Institute for Export and Investment, according to a press release (pdf). The two-day conference will include seminars and panel discussions on trade and investment in transport, energy, and water with Egyptian ministers and representatives from government bodies, alongside officials from international financing institutions and Spanish Secretary of State for Trade Xiana Méndez Bértolo. The agenda for the conference is available here (pdf).

The 14th edition of Creative Industry Summit will take place this Tuesday through Thursday (27-29 September) at Cairo Business Park, New Cairo. The summit serves as a platform to celebrate and foster creativity in Egypt and the MENA Region. This year the theme is “Creative Economy.” celebrating “the role of innovation and creativity in various industries” across the region, according to Mai Salama, founding partner of the summit.

The Africa Women Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum will take place at the Cairo Marriott Hotel on 26–27 September.

NEXT MONTH-

Our elected representatives will return from Sahel to start the new legislative session in the House on Saturday, 1 October, according to a presidential decree in the Official Gazette. Senators will return for the opening session on Tuesday, 4 October next week.

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

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Expect a daytime high of 37°C tomorrow before the mercury dips to a nighttime low of 23°C, according to our favorite weather app.