The government is set to announce measures to curb food price inflation today.

House committees signed off on key bills: the second round of the expat car import scheme, the decision to allow Abu Dhabi Ports to develop Safaga Port, and the cut to income tax proposed by the President last month. 

New rules announced by the Financial Regulatory Authority are making it easier for EGX-listed companies to perform share buybacks on the open market; changes include removing the requirement to notify the FRA three days in advance and allowing treasury stock trading on the open market instead of the special operations market (OPR).

COMI will no longer allow clients to make FX-denominated purchases or withdrawals using debit cards linked to EGP accounts.

BTFH has partnered with Italian financial services firm CRIF for unspecified cooperation in Egypt and the MENA region. BTFH will work with the firm to offer credit rating services, ESG scoring, and business information services.  

Customers of Turkish luxury department chain Beymen will be able to use ValU’s payments services under a partnership agreement signed by the two companies.

Islamic financial sector experts highlight that the demand on Islamic financing products has increased significantly over the last couple of years driven by the introduction of new products and increased global demand. 

EFID announced in a release yesterday the start of operations at its subsidiary, Edita Frozen Food Industries, with the launch of its newest brand, Molto Forni. 

AXPH is to distribute cash dividends of EGP13.0/share, implying DY of 9.1% and payout ratio of 52%.

ADCI is to distribute cash dividends of EGP4.5/share, implying DY of 7.5% and payout ratio of 32.6%.

ZMID is holding an auction on 25 October 2023 to sell seven industrial land plots ranging in size from 1,300 sqm to 1,630 sqm in Zahraa El Maadi.

AD Ports Group announced the signing of a concession agreement to develop, manage, and operate a multi-purpose port in Safaga in Egypt, in addition to signing two 15-year agreements, an MoU, and three Head of Terms (HoT) concerning ports located in Egypt’s Red Sea region and the Mediterranean Sea, enabling a major expansion of the Group’s activities into Egypt. 

A contract was signed between the Red Sea Ports Authority and the alliance of CSAG and the Suez Automated Shipping and Unloading Company to manage and operate two cargo storage yards in Safaga Port, with 80% of net revenues going to the General Authority for Red Sea Ports and 20% to the alliance, distributed as follows: 70% to CSAG and 30% to Suez Automated Shipping and Unloading Company.

Weekly Commodities Update 

 |   | Last Price | WoW Change, %
| Brent, USD/bbl | 84.6 | -11.3%
| Diesel-HSFO Spread, USD/ton | 391 | -11.9%
| Egypt Urea, USD/ton | 440 | 4.1%
| Polyethylene, USD/ton | 1,070 | 0.0%
| Polypropylene, USD/ton | 968 | 0.0%
| Steel/Iron Ore Spreads, USD/ton | 363 | 1.0%
| LME Aluminum Cash Price, USD/ton | 2,205 | -5.4%
| Egyptian Retail Cement, EGP/ton | 1,970 | 0.0%
| Steam Coal FOB Newcastle Australia, USD/ton | 139 | -13.5%
| SMP, USD/MT | 2,400 | 5.0%
| Last price may vary week over week in some indices due to time difference