Analysis Economy Dollars make life harder in Lebanon’s cash economy At the checkouts of a busy supermarket on Souraty Street in west Beirut, waiting customers count their dollars. Since the economic crash of 2019, paying by card has fallen out of favour and, increasingly, so has the Lebanese pound. The largest national note, the LBP100,000 bill, is currently worth just $1.07 at market rates. Paying […] June 19, 2023
Economy Egypt asks to join Brics to lessen dependency on dollar Egypt has submitted an application to join the Brics group of large emerging market countries to develop trade ties and potentially reduce dependency on the US dollar, according to the Russian ambassador in Cairo. Brics consists of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. “Egypt has submitted its application to join the Brics group because […] June 16, 2023
Economy Egypt’s economy weakens as long wait for reforms goes on Egypt’s non-oil private sector activity contracted for the 30th consecutive month in May, but at a slower pace than the previous 15 months, according to S&P Global’s latest survey. Businesses told S&P’s Egypt Purchasing Managers’ Index that high inflation continued to dent sales, output and purchasing. Some of those surveyed for May’s report, issued on […] June 6, 2023
Economy Egypt faces another devaluation, predict experts Economic analysts are predicting that the Egyptian government will be forced into a fourth devaluation of the Egyptian pound since February last year although uncertainty surrounds its timing and magnitude. Ramona Moubarak, head of Mena country risk at Fitch Solutions, cited sluggish capital inflows to Egypt and a growing parallel currency market due to persistent […] April 26, 2023
Economy Food prices drive latest hike in Egyptian inflation Egypt’s inflation hit some of the highest levels on record in March, the state statistics agency Capmas said on Monday. Year-on-year headline inflation increased to 32.7 percent while core inflation, which strips out energy and some food prices, slipped from an all-time high of 40.3 percent in February to 39.5 percent in March. The month-on-month […] April 11, 2023
Economy Egyptian interest rates nearing a 30-year high Interest rates in Egypt could soon reach a 30-year high, according to economists, amid fears that core inflation, already at a record 40.3 percent, will rise further. Last week, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) increased its overnight deposit rate and lending rate by 200 basis points (bps) to 18.25 percent and 19.25 percent respectively. […] April 7, 2023
Tourism Egypt’s five-year tourist visa meets an uncertain reaction Egyptian tourism will get a boost from a five-year tourist visa available for $700, the country’s government hopes. The visa has been announced as part of a national strategy to more than double tourist numbers over the next five years. Announcing the new visa at a press conference on Monday, Egyptian minister of tourism and […] March 29, 2023
Analysis Banking & Finance Rising demand for green bonds, despite ‘bleaching’ Global issuance of green bonds has increased by an average of 70 percent each year between 2016 and 2021. The market for environmental, social and corporate (ESG) governance finance in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region remains small compared to elsewhere, but it is growing quickly. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund issued $3 […] January 6, 2023
Cop28 Dispute over ‘loss and damage’ may extend talks for days Backroom disagreements on what should have been the final day of Cop27 have ensured that talks would spill over into Saturday and possibly beyond. Delegates have for the last few days been predicting that the talks would be extended. It was only on Friday morning that the conference presidency released the first official draft of […] November 19, 2022
Cop28 ‘Blame game’ and tension over lack of final proposal Cop27 attendees are preparing for a long weekend as it appears increasingly likely that talks in Sharm el-Sheikh will be extended. Speaking on Thursday evening at a press conference that was due to begin the process of wrapping up the summit, Cop27 president Sameh Shoukry told reporters that “there are still a number of issues […] November 18, 2022
Cop28 US plan to sell carbon credits to private firms gets mixed reaction With the opening speeches out of the way, day four of Cop27 was the first of the “thematic days”, as member parties moved into the back rooms out of view of the cameras to conduct the real negotiations. The biggest announcement of the day came via the US climate envoy, John Kerry. A new carbon […] November 10, 2022
Cop28 Developing countries call for new taxes on oil and gas producers By the end of the second full day of Cop27 the tone of the conference had been set. One after another, leaders of developing countries took to the plenary stage to voice their frustration and demand that rich nations offer more support to help combat the effects of climate change. After Barbadian prime minister Mia […] November 9, 2022
Cop28 Finance challenges burden Egypt’s clean energy goals A week before Cop27 began, the governor of South Sinai, Khaled Fouda, declared Sharm el-Sheikh “the first environmentally friendly tourist city in the Middle East.” His announcement marked the conclusion of the five-month “Green Sharm El-Sheikh” project, which introduced hundreds of electric cars, hybrid and hydrogen buses, and numerous vehicle charging points to the city […] November 8, 2022
Analysis Cop28 ‘Loss and damage’ to take centre stage at Cop27 The United Nation’s Cop27 summit has opened in Egypt with secretary-general Antonio Guterres stating that climate change is happening with “catastrophic speed” and the planet is sending a “distress signal”. More than 120 world leaders are due to arrive at the Cop27 summit being staged in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. This will […] November 7, 2022
