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Egypt

Migrants attempting to reach Italy from Tunisia. About 270,000 so-called irregular migrants arrived in the EU via sea crossings last year

EU reveals total aid to North Africa to combat migration 

The European Union provided €673 million ($718 million) in funding to four North African countries from 2021-23 to help the quartet reduce what it calls irregular migration to the 27-member bloc, official data shows. Last year about 270,000 “irregular migrants” arrived in the EU via sea crossings, 64 percent more than in 2022. Crossings from […]

Sodic general manager Ayman Amer and Robert De Niro, Nobu Hospitality Co-Founder, at the launch of their third venture in Egypt

Aldar-owned Sodic to build third Nobu hotel in Egypt

Sodic, the Egyptian real estate subsidiary of the UAE’s Aldar Properties and Nobu, the US-headquartered luxury lifestyle brand, have signed up to develop their third hospitality project in Egypt. The Nobu Hotel and Restaurant, which will come up in east Cairo, will open next year, the developer said in a statement. The cost of the […]

Egypt's wealthiest man, Nassef Sawiris, who lives in Cairo, has interests in construction, manufacturing and sports

Cairo has most billionaires in Africa, but wealthy are leaving

Cairo is home to more billionaires than any other African city, but Egypt is facing an exodus of its wealthiest citizens. The international wealth advisory firm Henley & Partners said Cairo is home to four billionaires, and 30 centi-millionaires – those worth $100 million or more. Most reside in affluent parts of Greater Cairo, including […]

A square in Cairo

‘Worst is behind us’ in Egypt’s black market dollar war says BMI

The Egyptian government’s priority for 2024 should be to keep the gap between the official and parallel exchange rates for Egypt’s pound and the US dollar as narrow as possible, says BMI Research. In a webinar on Tuesday BMI, a Fitch Group firm specialised in country risk, said that “the worst is behind us” in […]

reducing inflation Egypt Mohamed Maait finance minister

Reducing inflation is Egypt’s top priority, says minister

Reducing inflation in Egypt to align with the central bank’s target is the government’s main priority, the country’s finance minister, Mohamed Maait, has announced. Inflation in Egypt fell to 33 percent in March from 38 percent in September, passing the central bank’s target range of a 5 to 9 percentage point fall. Maait, speaking at […]

Egypt growth forecast Cairo street

World Bank lowers Egypt’s growth forecast again

The World Bank has downgraded Egypt’s growth forecast for the current fiscal year to 2.8 percent, the lowest for 11 years, despite recent investment in the country of nearly $60 billion. In its latest Middle East and North Africa economic update, the bank blamed “sluggish industrial sector performance” and the effects of war in the […]

A container vessel passes through the Suez Canal. Global supply chain volatility is falling, according to the latest data

Transportation costs fall as Suez disruption eases

Global transportation costs fell last month to their lowest level since December as the diminishing impact of Suez Canal disruption led container rates to decline.  Latest data shows no discernible impact on supplies from either the Red Sea attacks or from reduced capacity on the Panama Canal, with businesses adjusting to longer delivery schedules. The […]

A woman buys cooking oil at a market in downtown Cairo, Egypt

EU to provide ‘urgent’ $1bn short-term aid to Egypt

The European Union (EU) will provide €1 billion ($1.1 billion) in urgent short-term financial aid to support Egypt’s economy. The funding is part of the larger €5 billion macro-financial assistance package.  The remaining €4 billion will be released as longer-term assistance over 2024-2027 but is yet to be cleared by the 27-member bloc. The aid […]

Egypt's logistics corridors will link its Red Sea ports with those on the Mediterranean coast

Egypt building seven logistics corridors says minister

Egypt is building seven integrated logistics corridors as part of its plan to become a regional centre. The logistics corridors are under construction and will connect production facilities with ports, Egypt Today newspaper reported, quoting transport minister Kamel El Wazir. The corridors are located in Sokhna/Alexandria, Arish/Taba, Cairo/Alexandria, Tanta/Mansoura/Dameitta, Gargoub/Salloum, Cairo/Aswan/Abu Simbel, and Safaga/Qena/Tartour, the […]

President Sisi, a former field marshal, inspects a military academy. Egypt's armed forces are significant players in several economic sectors

Military’s role in economy muddies Egypt’s debt plan

The military’s role in the Egyptian economy makes it unlikely the country will meet International Monetary Fund targets to increase tax revenue as a proportion of GDP, which could spell trouble for the hugely indebted nation. Egypt’s public external debt – money borrowed in foreign currencies – was $165 billion in September 2023, having more […]

Ras El-Hekma international airport will support Egypt's new metropolis, located 350 km northwest of Cairo

Egypt allocates land for airport at ADQ’s metropolis

The Egyptian government has allocated two plots of land for the development of Ras El-Hekma international airport by UAE sovereign wealth fund ADQ. The land plots in Matrouh, a governorate in the north-west of Egypt, were handed over to the country’s civil aviation ministry, Ahram Online newspaper reported. The airport development is part of the […]

Egypt’s inflation eases to 33.3% in March

Egypt’s annual urban consumer price inflation rate slowed to a lower-than-expected 33.3 percent in March from 35.7 percent in February, data from the country’s statistics agency Capmas showed on Monday. Month-on-month, prices rose by one percent in March, down from 11.4 percent in February. A poll of 12 analysts had expected annual inflation to climb to a […]

The global refurbished and used mobile phone market is forecast to grow from $50bn in 2022 to $172bn by 2033

Egypt plans €100m smartphone recycling centre

A €100 million smartphone refurbishment and recycling plant is being planned for the Suez Canal Economic Zone.  The man leading the project is named by Daily News Egypt as Samuel Mathias, an expatriate Egyptian who is said to be a Paris-based electronics engineer and business owner.  The newspaper said that Soha Gendi, Egypt’s minister of […]

Taaleem has doubled its investment in edtech over the past five years but says it is selective with its use

Mena reaches for tech to upgrade results in education

Demand for education technology, or edtech, is growing in the Middle East and North Africa as countries seek to bolster learning to drive economic growth.  However, experts warned against excessive use of technology in classrooms, saying it could affect the attainment of basic skills such as reading and writing.  Examples of edtech include interactive whiteboards, […]

Garment exports from Egypt to the US, Europe and Arab countries have increased this year

Egypt’s garment exports to Saudi Arabia rise 90%

Egypt’s garment exports to Arab countries rose 35 percent year on year to $100 million during the first two months of 2024, a trade association executive has said. Sales to Saudi Arabia surged 90 percent year on year to $25 million during the January and February period, Daily News Egypt reported, quoting Marie-Louis Bishara, president […]

Egypt rates Sisi

Egypt will still feel the heat despite US rate cuts

Likely US interest rate cuts will lower Egypt’s interest repayment costs on its vast public debts. But this will do little to ease pressure on the country to sell national assets in order to reduce its overall borrowings. Egypt’s public external debt – money borrowed in foreign currencies – was $110 billion in 2022, having […]

The free trade agreement was signed in May 2022 by the two countries' economy ministers: Orna Barbivai of Israel and the UAE's Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri

Israel’s trade with Arab countries up 16% in 2023

Trade between Israel and the seven Arab countries that have normalised relations with the Jewish state broke records in 2023, exceeding $4 billion, up 16 percent from 2022, according to a report. Bilateral trade among the nations decreased by only 4 percent following the outbreak of the war in Gaza in October, from $937 million […]

Alexandria train station. Egypt's Green Line will connect the city to the Mediterranean coast, the Gulf of Suez and the Red Sea

Egypt chooses British Steel for Green Line rail track

British Steel, the UK steel products producer, has secured a multi-million-pound deal to supply parts for a new rail route stretching across Egypt. In total 9,500 tonnes of track will be delivered for Egypt’s Green Line, its first fully electrified mainline and freight network from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean. The exact value of […]

Kuwait growth inflation bagpipe player PMI

Kuwait’s record performance tempered by costs

Rising inflation and increasing staffing costs are weighing heavily on Kuwait’s non-oil business sector despite growth, the latest business sentiment survey has revealed. The seasonally adjusted S&P Global Kuwait purchasing managers’ index (PMI) revealed strong growth, with competitive pricing by businesses helping to attract new customers. The index was up at 53.2 for March from […]

Egypt’s Sisi vows continued development in new term

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi was sworn in for his third term on Tuesday in the country’s new capital, the largest of the mega-projects that have come to symbolise his rule while stretching the country’s finances. Speaking at the new parliament building, Sisi highlighted the challenges Egypt withstood in recent years while promising continued development, […]

The value of the Egyptian pound has halved since 2022, leading to reduced investment

Egypt’s foreign assets deficit plunges after UAE land sale

Egypt’s deficit in net foreign assets (NFAs) shrank by EGP217.1 billion ($7.04 billion) in February, according to central bank data, after a $5 billion payment from the sale of development rights to prime Mediterranean land. Egypt received the initial $5 billion payment from the UAE in its $24 billion deal at Ras El Hekma peninsula west of […]