Wall Street bankers reiterated their warnings about the global economy at the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh yesterday, Reuters reports. Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said the Fed may have to raise interest rates beyond 4.5-4.75% if consumer demand and the labor market holds. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, meanwhile, said that the current geopolitical climate — including war in Ukraine and rising tensions between the US and China — is a greater cause for concern than a potential US recession.

Saudi Arabia’s IPO pipeline is nowhere near empty, Tadawul boss Mohammed Al-Rumaih told Bloomberg on the sidelines of Davos in the Desert. “There are 18 approvals that will “materialize within the next three months” and more than 70 listing applications that are being reviewed by the bourse and the market regulator,” the business information service reports.

ALSO WORTH NOTING-

• A major Meta investor just gave Zuckerberg a warning: Investment firm Altimeter Capital has urged Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to reduce staff, cut costs, and scale down his plans for the metaverse in response to a sharp decline in the company’s share price, signaling growing shareholder dissatisfaction. (Wall Street Journal)
• The Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) has closed a USD 389 mn Samurai loan facility as part of efforts to diversify funding. (Statement)

THE CLOSING BELL-

The EGX30 rose 1.5% at yesterday’s close on turnover of EGP 992.5 mn (2.8% below the 90-day average). Local investors were net sellers. The index is down 12.34% YTD.

In the green: Orascom Construction (+5.6%), CIB (+5.1%) and Madinet Nasr for Housing and Development (+4.2%).

In the red: e-Finance (-2.1%), Alexandria Containers and Cargo Handling (-1.3%) and Eastern Company (-1.3%).

Asian markets are up in early trading this morning, while futures suggest European and US indices are set to open in the red later on today after some of the world’s biggest tech firms yesterday reported disappointing earnings results.