More African nations at risk of debt distress may have to go to the G20 to negotiate restructuring their debts, a UN official told Bloomberg. Chad, Zambia, Ethiopia and Ghana have all sought to receive debt relief under the G20 framework and “four or five” additional African nations may soon join them on the back of rising rates and a stronger greenback, Antonio Pedro, the executive secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa, told the business news outlet.

The EM bond market has stabilized since last summer: Bloomberg data points to as many as 15 emerging markets with average USD-bond yields trading in excess of 1k bps over that of the US Treasuries — an indicator of debt distress. This is down from 21 countries during the height of the market turmoil last year which saw almost a fifth of EM debt trading at distressed levels.

Egypt isn’t on the list, but it’s close: Yields on Egyptian USD debt are trading at 730 bps above US treasuries, according to Bloomberg. This is down from last summer when the spread between Egyptian and US treasuries was above 1k bps.

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EARNINGS WATCH- Our friends at Mashreq had quite the year: Dubai-based lender Mashreq’s net income more than tripled to AED 3.7 bn in 2022, it said in its earnings release (pdf) yesterday. Revenues rose 29.1% during the year to AED 7.50 bn thanks to 50% growth in net interest income. “Double-digit growth was recorded across each and every business unit in 2022,” Chairman of Mashreq Abdul Aziz Al Ghurair said.

CEO Ahmed Abdelaal noted “solid growth in all business activities” last year “as we continue to solidify our status in the market as a power digital disruptor and challenger bank,” zeroing in on the bank’s very healthy 39% ratio of non-interest-income to operating income, which he called “one of the industry’s best.”

On a quarterly basis: Mashreq’s net earnings surged 53% to AED 1.13 bn in 4Q 2022. Revenues were up 43% y-o-y to AED 2.15 bn on the back of a 83% rise in net interest income, which brought in AED 1.48 bn during the quarter.

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Renewables could benefit from the war in Ukraine: That’s according to BP, which has cut its demand forecast for fossil fuels on the back of the disruption to global energy markets caused by the conflict. In its annual outlook (pdf), the energy company said that heightened concerns about energy security would cause renewables demand to grow 5% by 2035 and cause a shift away from hydrocarbons. Demand for oil will fall 5% and natural gas 6% in the same period, it said.

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Embattled Adani receives vote of confidence from the UAE: The Abu Dhabi-based International Holding Company (IHC) will invest USD 400 mn in Adani Enterprises’ secondary share sale, Bloomberg reports. The investment — which accounts for 16% of the offering — is a show of support for the Indian conglomerate which has lost USD 65 bn in market value on the back of a short seller’s report that accused it of committing fraud.

	EGX30	17,027	-2.2% (YTD: +16.6%)
	USD (CBE)	Buy 29.93	Sell 30.03
	USD at CIB	Buy 30.00	Sell 30.10
	Interest rates CBE	16.25% deposit	17.25% lending
	Tadawul	10,811	-0.3% (YTD: +3.2%)
	ADX	9,802	+0.7% (YTD: -4.0%)
	DFM	3,303	-0.8% (YTD: -1.0%)
	S&P 500	4,018	-1.3% (YTD: +4.6%)
	FTSE 100	7,785	+0.3% (YTD: +4.5%)
	Euro Stoxx 50	4,159	-0.5% (YTD: +9.6%)
	Brent crude	USD 84.90	-2.0%
	Natural gas (Nymex)	USD 2.68	+0.2%
	Gold	USD 1,938.60	-0.0%
	BTC	USD 22,824	-3.6% (YTD: +38.0%)

THE CLOSING BELL-

The EGX30 fell 2.2% at yesterday’s close on turnover of EGP 2.9 bn (66% above the 90-day average). Foreign investors were net sellers. The index is up 16.6% YTD.

In the green: Eastern Company (+4.4%), CIRA Education (+1.0%) and Egypt Kuwait Holding -EGP (+0.2%).

In the red: Telecom Egypt (-7.1%), Heliopolis Housing (-7.0%) and Madinet Nasr Housing and Development (-5.6%).