Fed could keep raising rates for longer: Federal Reserve officials could decide to keep raising interest rates for longer due to the unexpected strength of the US economy, minutes (pdf) from the central bank’s last policy meeting indicated yesterday. The vast majority of officials were on board with lowering the increase to 25 bps last month, though all participants thought that “ongoing” increases would be needed to bring inflation down to the 2% target, which is “likely to take some time,” the document shows.

ALSO WORTH NOTING-

• Record high interest rates in the eurozone? Investors expect the European Central Bank to hike its key interest rate to a record high of 3.75% by September — up 125 bps from its current level — as the bloc’s economic resilience raises concerns that inflation may be more difficult to curb than previously thought. (Financial Times)
• Iraq wants CNY-denominated trade with China: Iraq's central bank is planning to allow payment in CNY for Chinese imports as it grapples with a shortage of the greenback. (Reuters)
• Lebanon’s inflation continued to soar in January, hitting 123.5% y-o-y as the country continues to suffer amid a devastating economic crisis. (Lebanon’s Central Administration Statistics, pdf)
• Chinese state firms to shun the Big Four: The Chinese government has urged state-owned companies not to renew contracts with Western auditing giants KPMG, Deloitte, PwC, and EY over data security concerns amid tensions with the US. (Bloomberg)

	EGX30	16,777	-1.5% (YTD: +14.9%)
	USD (CBE)	Buy 30.58	Sell 30.68
	USD at CIB	Buy 30.58	Sell 30.68
	Interest rates CBE	16.25% deposit	17.25% lending
	Tadawul	10,270	-1.0% (YTD: -2.0%)
	ADX	9,888	-0.6% (YTD: -3.2%)
	DFM	3,427	-0.9% (YTD: +2.7%)
	S&P 500	3,991	-0.2% (YTD: +4.0%)
	FTSE 100	7,931	-0.6% (YTD: +6.4%)
	Euro Stoxx 50	4,243	-0.2% (YTD: +11.9%)
	Brent crude	USD 80.45	-3.1%
	Natural gas (Nymex)	USD 2.17	+4.5%
	Gold	USD 1,833.90	-0.5%
	BTC	USD 23,803	-1.6% (YTD: +44.1%)

THE CLOSING BELL-

The EGX30 fell 1.5% at yesterday’s close on turnover of EGP 1.67 bn (15.4% below the 90-day average). Local investors were net sellers. The index is up 14.9% YTD.

In the green: Eastern Company (+0.1%).

In the red: GB Auto (-4.9%), Cleopatra Hospitals (-4.9%), and Palm Hills Development (-4.8%).