It was a packed night on talk shows yesterday, with PM Madbouly’s sitdown with Qatari investors in Doha leading the conversation (for more, see this morning’s What We’re Tracking Today and Investment Watch sections, above). Kelma Akhira (watch, runtime: 4:36), Ala Mas’ouleety (watch, runtime: 11:13) and Al Hayah Al Youm (watch, runtime: 6:30) all had coverage.

Also getting attention on the airwaves:

• Egypt-Hungary talks: Yesterday’s meeting between President El Sisi and Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán got coverage from Ala Mas’ouleety (watch, runtime: 15:46), Kelma Akhira (watch, runtime: 3:31) and Al Hayah Al Youm (watch, runtime: 2:58). For more information, head to this morning’s Diplomacy section, below.
• New fees on tourism companies: The Tourism Ministry’s decision to impose new fees on the industry (more details in the news well, above) was also picked up by Kelma Akhira, with Sunrise Resorts Chairman Hossam El Shaer calling the move “very important” for promoting Egypt’s tourism industry (watch, runtime: 8:34).
• Good news for smartphone assemblers: The House giving final sign off to slashing customs duties and scrapping development fees on imported mobile components got a mention from Ala Mas’ouleety, with House Planning Committee Chair Fakhri El Fiqi phoning the show on the decision (watch, runtime: 6:28). “This will stimulate FDI through assemblers setting up shop in the country,” he said. There’s more in the news well, above,
• Steel prices surge: A steel supply crunch has pushed prices up by EGP 2k to reach EGP 29-30k, head of the Cairo Chamber of Commerce’s Building Materials Division Ahmed El Zeiny told Yahduth Fi Masr (watch, runtime: 4:16). The shortage came due to some manufacturers lowering supply in the market to focus on exporting steel, he said.

ATM Misr inaugurating a EGP 1 bn bus factory in New Suez City also got the spotlight, with the company’s Managing Director Amr Al Kouatli telling Kelma Akhira that the plan has been in the works for some 7-8 years now (watch, runtime: 5:26). He said work on the factory lagged due to recent economic conditions, including the pandemic. The Saudi-owned player will deliver 51 King Long Chinese busses to KSA’s National Trading Company Al Koutali said, serving the pilgrimage, education and public transport markets. He said local production input in the vehicles will be as high as 60%.

Expect the first batch of finished buses to be exported to Saudi Arabia within the next 1.5 months, he said. The new factory also got coverage from Al Hayah Al Youm (watch, runtime: 15:38) and Masa’a DMC (watch, runtime: 1:00)