EGYPT WEEKLY NEWSLETTER MARCH, 2014 (1ST QUARTER) CONTENT 1. Political Overview………..........01 2. Economic Overview……..….…..02 3. Banking………………….…………….03 4. Finance.…………………….……..….04 5. Projects……………………..………..05 6. Tourism…………………………..…..06 7. Industry..….………………………….06 8. IT & Telecom……..…..…………...07 9. Building Materials………………..07 10. Real Estate………………………...07 11. Laws & Regulations…………...08 Compiled by Thai Trade Center, Cairo POLITICAL OVERVIEW Egypt: El-Sissi Gives Sign of Presidential Run Source: ABC News, March 3, 2014 Egypt's military chief, Field Marshal Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, gave his strongest indication yet that he intends to run for president, saying Tuesday that he "can't turn his back" to public demands. In a campaign-style speech, he said Egyptians must unite and end street turmoil to tackle the country's mounting economic and security woes. El-Sissi is considered almost certain to win if he runs for president, riding on a wave of popular fervor since he ousted the country's first freely elected president, Islamist Mohammed Morsi, who had faced massive protests demanding his removal after a year in office. Since the ouster last summer, a heated anti-Islamist and nationalist media campaign has fanned support for el-Sissi, touting him as the nation's savior. For weeks, pro-military media have been saying the field marshal will announce his candidacy imminently. El-Sissi's speech to military cadets and their families during a graduation ceremony, later aired on state TV, appeared aimed at explaining to nervous supporters why he has not yet made an official announcement amid the widespread expectations — while laying out what is likely to be a theme of his campaign, that Egyptians must take responsibility for restoring stability and rebuilding the economy. He virtually confirmed he intends to run. "Don't imagine that anyone who truly loves his country and loves the Egyptians, can ever turn his back on them when he finds there is a desire by many of them. No one can do that," he said, to applause from the audience. He said he could not openly declare his candidacy since he still holds the post of defense minister. "Let us leave things for the coming days," he said, hinting that he was waiting for the interim president to issue a law governing the presidential vote. The vote is to be held by the end of April. Egypt Weekly Newsletter 1 Thai Trade Center, Cairo March, 2014 (1st quarter) Sherif Yehya "I spoke in signs so that people don't get confused" amid much speculation, el-Sissi said. "I hope you all got the sign." His call for unity reflected the daunting problems he would face if he becomes president. Morsi's Islamist supporters have been protesting for months demanding his reinstatement, though the protests have waned in the face of a fierce police crackdown that has killed an estimated 2,000 people and arrested thousands of members of Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood. Also, Islamic militants have been waging a campaign of bombings and assassinations. The economy has been wrecked since the 2011 ouster of autocratic President Hosni Mubarak. "Don't imagine that any one person can solve the problems in Egypt, regardless of who it is you select. No, it will be solved by all of us," he said. "Don't imagine that the problems accumulated for over 30 years, can be solved without us joining hands." In an implicit call to Morsi supporters to end their protests, he said, "Maybe eight months (since Morsi's ouster) is a time to start to review and reconsider. ... Look around you to see if what is happening pleases God." "Egyptians, you need to put your hands together to avert a real danger for Egypt," he said. Over the past weeks, the 59-year-old U.S.-trained army chief has been increasingly acting in a presidential fashion, most notably a visit last month to Russia, where he secured the Kremlin's blessing for his likely presidential bid. Last week, his wife made her first public appearance: Intisar el-Sissi was seated next to him during a ceremony honoring senior officers. ECONOMIC OVERVIEW UNEMPLOYMENT STABLE AT 13.6% IN 4Q2013 Source: Ahram Online, March 01, 2014 Egypt’s unemployment rate remained unchanged in the fourth quarter of 2013 at 13.4% of a labor force of 27.3 million people. Unemployment among young people aged 15-29 hit 69% of the labor force in the last quarter of 2013. More than 82% of them hold diplomas and university degrees. Since the 2011 revolution, the number of the unemployed increased by 1.3 million to 3.65 million people in the last quarter of 2013. According to CAPMAS, the unemployment rate among male workers reached 10%, while among females it was 25%. Urban areas experienced a modest rise in unemployment rate to 17.6%as compared to 16.7% in the previous quarter. Unemployment in rural areas shrunk to 10.1% from 10.8% in the previous quarter. PRIME MINISTER IBRAHIM MEHLEB APPOINTS NEW MINISTERS Source: Beltone, March 2, 2014 Newly appointed Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb formed Egypt’s new cabinet met with each minister, addressing what their ministry will focus on in the next stage. Doria Sharaf El-Din, who was reappointed minister of information, said Mehleb tasked her with upholding a slogan for the media: Reconciliation with the people. Mehleb merged a total of 12 ministries, amongst are: 1) the Ministries of Trade and of Investment, headed by Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour, 2) the Ministries of Higher Education and of Scientific Research, headed by Ashraf Mansour, 3) the Ministries of Egypt Weekly Newsletter 2 Thai Trade Center, Cairo March, 2014 (1st quarter) Sherif Yehya Transitional Justice and of the House of Representatives, headed by Amin Al- Mahdi,4) the ministries of Planning and of International Cooperation, headed by Ashraf El-Araby, and 5) the Ministries of Local Development and of Administrative Development, headed by Adel Labib. Khaled Hanafi was also appointed as new minister of Supply and Mohamed Shaker replaced Ahmed Imam as minister of Electricity. Nahed Al-Ashry was appointed as the new minister of Manpower, replacing Kamal Abu Eita. Ghada Wali, the new minister of Social Solidarity. Other ministers who dodged the latest reshuffle include: Minister of Agriculture Ayman Abu Hadid, Minister of Petroleum Sherif Ismail, Minister of Communication Atef Helmy, and Minister of Education Mahmoud Abul Nasr. BANKING Egypt's central bank expected to keep main rates on hold Source: Yahoo, February 28, 2014 Egypt's central bank is expected to keep interest rates unchanged at a monetary policy meeting on Thursday, a Reuters survey shows, as officials seek to balance the need to stimulate the economy while curbing high inflation. Egypt's economy has endured more than three years of political instability after the overthrow of autocrat Hosni Mubarak in 2011 deterred tourists and foreign investors. The bank is under pressure to keep interest rates high to attract funds out of foreign currencies and into the Egyptian pound. In its last monetary policy meeting Egypt kept its deposit rate at 8.25 percent and its lending rate at 9.25 percent. It also kept its discount rate and the rate it uses to price one-week repurchase and deposit operations at 8.75 percent. Five of six economists surveyed by Reuters expect the bank to keep rates unchanged on Thursday, while one expected it to cut them by 50 basis points. "The central bank cut interest rates three times and we haven't seen the impact on credit growth, so they might want to take a breather. Inflation is decelerating but still remains high," said EFG-Hermes economist Mohamed Abu Basha. Egypt's annual urban inflation rate slowed to 11.4 percent in January from 11.7 percent in December. Core annual inflation slid to 11.7 percent in January from 11.9 percent in December. Supported by more than $12 billion in aid from Gulf states, Egypt launched two stimulus packages worth around 30 billion Egyptian pounds ($4.3 billion) each to spur growth in its ailing economy. Unlike other analysts surveyed by Reuters, Jason Tuvey, assistant economist at Capital Economics, expects the central bank to cut rates on Thursday by 50 basis points as the Egyptian economy continues its recovery. "Aid from the Gulf means that the central bank doesn't need to keep interest rates high in order to attract foreign capital inflows," Tuvey said. Egypt Weekly Newsletter 3 Thai Trade Center, Cairo March, 2014 (1st quarter) Sherif Yehya FINANCE CITADEL CAPITAL COMPLETES INVESTMENT PURCHASES OF EGP3.7 BILLION Source: Beltone, March 01, 2014 Citadel Capital has completed its planned purchases of additional stakes in its platform companies totaling EGP3.7 billion as part of its ongoing transformation into an investment company that will hold majority stakes in its subsidiaries in five core industries: energy, transportation, agrifoods, mining, and cement. The asset purchases cover the platform companies and subsidiaries outlined in the group's submitted forms as approved by the EFSA. Citadel Capital's board accepted a report by its independent auditor (KPMG) certifying the EGP3.7 billion in liabilities to co- investors and shareholders arising from these securities purchases. These liabilities will be capitalized during the second subscription round for the capital increase, thereby resulting in full subscription to the share issuance. The closing date for the first round of subscriptions was February 13, 2014 with hardly any coverage, and the second round is expected to be completed in March 2014. CENTRAL BANK EARMARKS USD1.44 BILLION FOR LOW-COST HOUSING Source: Reuters, March 04, 2014 The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) announced it would allocate EGP10 billion (USD1.44 billion) for low-cost housing projects.