The Egyptian government has approved the new export subsidies program for fiscal year (FY) 2023/2024 at an estimated cost ranging between EGP 28 billion and EGP 30 billion

Newsletter

28 Mar 2023

The Egyptian government has approved the new export subsidies program for fiscal year (FY) 2023/2024 at an estimated cost ranging between EGP 28 billion and EGP 30 billion. This marks a remarkable surge from the current fiscal year’s budget for the export subsidies program amounting to EGP 8 billion. The three-year program is set to be effective as of July 1st. The new program’s automated system will be launched in July as well. For his part, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said that the government targets preparing a solid program to support and boost Egyptian exports as well as back exporters to reach all global and regional markets. (Arab Finance)

The Egyptian government is set to sign eight new memoranda of understanding (MoUs) in the field of green hydrogen production soon
In an interview, Walid Gamal El-Din, Head of SC Zone did not reveal any details about the potential companies or the timeframe for signing the MoUs. He added that the SCZone is working to localize a number of industries, including the automotive industry. The SCZone’s head revealed that there are advanced negotiations with a Chinese firm to localize the electric vehicles (EVs) industry, which will be announced before next June. (Arab Finance)
Cairo Airport Company and Singapore’s Changi Airports International Company have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on airports development, Egypt’s Civil Aviation Ministry
The MoU was signed by Chairman of the Cairo Airport Company Magdy Ishak and CEO of Changi Airports International Company Eugene Gan, in the presence of a group of top officials from both sides. The cooperation aims at benefiting from the Singaporean expertise in the field of international airports, as a starting point for several joint future projects. Egyptian Civil Aviation Minister Mohamed Abbas said that his ministry is currently implementing several development projects in cooperation with major international and local partners, with the aim of making a quantum leap in the quality of services provided to users of Egyptian airports. (Arab Finance)
Deputy Tourism Minister Ghada Shalbi discussed on Sunday with Australian Ambassador in Cairo Axel Wabenhorst ways of increasing tourism inflow from Australia to Egypt
The diplomat lauded Egypt's tourist destinations, saying the Australian tourist is not familiar with all of Egypt's tourist products. He underlined the importance of promoting all tourism potentials Egypt has to encourage more Australians to visit the country, he added. They agreed on holding meetings between Egyptian and Australian tour organizers within the coming period to get updated on the latest in the Egyptian tourism industry. (Egypt Today)
HSBC Expects that The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) will likely raise interest rates by 3% at the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting on March 30
The MPC left the overnight deposit rate, overnight lending rate, and the rate of the main operation intact at 16.25%, 17.25% and 16.75% percent, respectively, in its first meeting in February. Last year, the apex bank increased interest rates four times to 8%. According to HSBC, the interest hikes will put more burden on borrowing and slow growth rate. The CBE must follow an inflation-targeted monetary policy to have a real return on investment in the Egyptian pound, the bank added. HSBC said the real return on investment currently stands at -15 percent against inflation; therefore, the CBE will have to follow a "very stringent" monetary policy.Earlier this month, Goldman Sachs Group projected that the CBE would raise interest rates by nearly 300 basis points during its upcoming MPC. (Zawya)
Tabarak Holding has organized four special exhibitions in February and March in a number of Gulf countries to showcase its projects
The first exhibition was held in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, from 15 to 18 February, then Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, from 2 to 4 March, and Dubai, UAE, from 4 to 5 March, and the tour concluded in Dammam, Saudi Arabia, from 9 to 11March. Vice President of Tabarak Holding Bassem ElShorbany stated that the exhibitions in the Gulf countries met with a strong demand by Egyptian communities and a greater turnout from the citizens of those countries. ElShorbany said: “This demand reflects the confidence of the Gulf market in investing in Egyptian real estate and confidence in the Egyptian economy. TBK has four branches in the Gulf in Kuwait, Abu Dhabi, Jeddah and Riyadh to provide the best customer service and continuous communication with customers.” (Mubasher)
Egyptian National Railways (ENR) and Talgo have signed a cooperation protocol for the Spanish manufacturer to establish a factory in Egypt
The protocol was signed by ENR chairman, Mr Mohamed Amer, and Talgo regional director, Mr Mohamed Khadra Egypt’s Ministry of Transport signed an agreement with Talgo and the National Egyptian Railway Industries Company (NERIC)to research the possibility of establishing an Egyptian factory for the manufacture of passenger coaches in August 2022. Egyptian minister of transport, Mr Kamel al-Wazir, says the factory will be established in the Kom Abu Rady area in the Beni Suef governorate. The manufacturing and maintenance facility will be built on an 8.4ha site near ENR’s Kom Abu Rady workshops. The factory will manufacture a first batch of 50 coaches, with a second batch of 50 planned. Manufacturing will be carried out by Egyptian engineers and technicians under the supervision of Spanish experts, with local components accounting for up to 45% of the total, with this due to increase in future. ENR put into service the first of six locomotive-hauled inter-city trains supplied by Talgo on its premier Cairo - Alexandria route in December 2022. (Al Ahram)
4,000 kilometers in Upper Egypt are allocated to power-generating solar and wind stations
The stations will be located in Beni Suef, Sohag, Asyut, and west of the Nile River. Aswan in southern Egypt is a promising governorate for solar energy projects, the source said. New stations with a capacity of 700 megawatts are being established to Komombo, and there are future projects with a capacity of 2000 megawatts, he added. During the next 5 years, Egypt will witness unprecedented expansions in renewable energy to be an integrated power solution that the state needs in mega projects, the source explained. Renewable energy will also be an essential element in water desalination projects, green hydrogen production and safe disposal of radioactive waste, he continued (Arab Finance)
Egypt, UAE, Jordan and Bahrain discussed the production of the first joint Arab electric vehicle during the higher committee meetings of the Integrated Industrial Partnership held in Cairo
In a statement on Sunday, the Arab Organisation for Industrialisation (AOI) of Egypt called for the swift completion of preliminary procedures in time for the vehicle to be showcased at the 28th UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) in UAE later this year. Since its launch in Abu Dhabi in May 2022, the partnership between the four Arab countries has seen the signing of multi-billion deals to boost sustainable growth and explore opportunities for joint investments, especially in priority sectors. Late last month, UAE-based automotive manufacturer M Glory Holding announced a $550 million project to establish three integrated factories for electric vehicles in Egypt, the UAE and Jordan during the third meeting of the higher committee in Amman. M Glory introduced UAE's first home-made electric vehicle, Al-Damani DMV300, in March last year. (Al Ahram Online)
Egypt’s non-oil business sectors were responsible for the lion’s share of net foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows during the first quarter (1Q) of the current FY2022/2023 (July-September 2022).
The period saw Egypt’s net foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows double to approximately $3.6 billion, up from $1.7 billion in the same period of FY2021/2022. The report states that the non-oil business sectors received $3.3 billion in FDI inflows, growing by $1.5 billion, due to the rise in proceeds from the sale of local entities to non-residents. The FDI inflows increase is attributed to the increase in net greenfield investments and capital increases of existing companies. The report also showed a decrease in the net inflows for real estate purchases by non-residents in the 1Q of FY2022/2023 to $165 million, down from $231.1 million in the same period of FY2021/2022. For the oil business sector, the report highlighted a fall in the 1Q of FY2022/2023 to $320.5 million, down from $489.2 million in the 1Q of FY2022/2023. The report explains that the decrease in outflows is due to the increase in total inflows representing new investments of foreign oil contractors to $1.4 billion, up from $1.2 billion. (Arab Finance)