Skip to content Skip to Search
Skip navigation

FTSE places Egypt on potential demotion watch list

By Pramod Kumar
Egyptian stock exchange Reuters/Shokry Hussien
The Egyptian Exchange bell is seen at the stock exchange in Cairo. The market is at risk of becoming unclassified

Global index provider FTSE Russell will add Egypt and Pakistan to the watch lists for potential demotion in its equity index suites.

The two countries will be on watch lists for demotion from “secondary emerging markets”, with Egypt moving to become an “unclassified market” and Pakistan getting “frontier market” status.

“Market participants and index users have reported ongoing delays to their ability to repatriate capital from Egypt since March 2023,” the index provider said in a statement.

FTSE Russell has expressed these concerns to the Egyptian market authorities and will continue the engagement process to ascertain the expected duration of the delays and the issues international investors face when trying to repatriate capital.

In addition, Vietnam will remain on the list for a possible upgrade from “frontier market” to “secondary emerging”.

FTSE will update the watch list status of Egypt, Vietnam and Pakistan as part of its equity country classification in March 2024.

Latest articles

STC wants to consolidate the mobile tower market

STC approves PIF purchase of telecom company

Shareholders of Saudi telecom giant STC have approved plans to create a new telecommunications infrastructure company in which the Public Investment Fund will have a 51 percent stake valued at SAR8.7 billion ($2.3 billion).  Under the deal, the STC-owned Telecommunication Towers Co. Limited (Tawal) will become a PIF subsidiary through a merger with Golden Lattice […]

Flavio Cattaneo of Enel, of which Endesa is a subsidiary, and Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi at the signing of the deal

Masdar buys stake in Spanish utilities company Endesa

The UAE’s state-owned clean energy company Masdar has agreed to acquire a minority stake in Spanish electric utility business Endesa to partner for 2.5 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy assets in Spain. Under the agreement, subject to regulatory approval, Masdar will invest nearly $890 million to acquire a 49.99 percent stake in Endesa, with an […]

Person, Worker, Adult

Aramco and PIF invest in Saudi-Chinese steel venture

Saudi Aramco and the Public Investment Fund have doubled their investment in a steel plate joint venture with a Chinese company to $500 million. The two Saudi companies each own 25 percent shares in the new venture in Ras Al Khair industrial city, Bloomberg reported, quoting a statement published on the Chinese stock exchange. Chinese […]

Car, Transportation, Vehicle

Dubai Taxi to pay $43m dividend despite profit drop

Dubai Taxi Company, a subsidiary of the emirate’s transport regulator, has approved a dividend payout of AED159 million ($43 million) for the first half of 2024 despite a marginal 1 percent increase in net profit. Net earnings reached AED187.4 million in the first six months of the year, compared to AED186.3 million at the same […]