Good morning ladies and gents. There may be only seven working days remaining of the year but 2022 shows no signs of wanting to take a time out. Here in Egypt we have a crucial central bank policy meeting tomorrow and — as the IMF’s Egypt mission chief reminds us — the probable unwinding of the dreaded L/C requirement by next week (more on that in the news well, below). Meanwhile abroad, the Bank of Japan just breathed new life into the 2022 rollercoaster ride that is the global financial markets — check out this morning’s Planet Finance for more on that.

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THIS WEEK-

It’s the Central Bank of Egypt’s final policy meeting of the year on Thursday: Most analysts in a Reuters poll are expecting policymakers to close out 2022 with another king-size 200-bps rate hike to support the currency and tackle rising inflation — chiming with the majority of those we surveyed last week. Seven of the nine analysts and economists we spoke to are forecasting the central bank to raise rates, five of which see a 200-bps hike. This would take the policy rate to 15.25%, its highest level since early 2019.

PSA #1- MPs are now on a two-week break: The House of Representatives will be back in session on 2 January.

PSA #2- Another year with no state-funded Hajj trips: The Awqaf Ministry is once again suspending state-funded Hajj pilgrimages, making this the third consecutive year that the government has canceled its annual free Hajj trips. The action was first taken in 2020 when the ministry decided to redirect those funds to support those affected by the pandemic.

THERE ARE THREE BIG STORIES ABROAD THIS MORNING-

#1- Trump’s tax returns are finally going public after a House committee yesterday voted to release them. (AP | Reuters | WSJ | Washington Post | NYT)

#2- Sam Bankman-Fried will be extradited to the US from the Bahamas today to face a range of criminal charges related to the collapse of crypto exchange FTX. (Bloomberg | CNBC)

#3- Elon Musk will abide by the results of this week’s poll and will appoint a new CEO to take charge at Twitter as soon as one is found. (AP | Reuters | Bloomberg)

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SIGN OF THE TIMES- Tech startups are scrambling amid funding drought: Silicon Valley tech startups are working overtime to keep themselves afloat and are turning to alternative sources of finance following a steep decline in VC funding, the Financial Times reports. Companies are looking at bridge loans and structured equity in efforts to avoid being forced to cut their valuations in down rounds.

*** It’s Hardhat day — your weekly briefing of all things infrastructure in Egypt: Enterprise’s industry vertical focuses each Wednesday on infrastructure, covering everything from energy, water, transportation, and urban development, as well as social infrastructure such as health and education.

In today’s issue: 2022: A year of headwinds for infrastructure players.