Musings From Abroad

Egypt: Bond prices rise following announcement of $5 billion Saudi investment

Published

3 months ago

September 19, 2024

Bond prices rose on Thursday after Egyptian Prime Minister, Mostafa Madbouly, declared that a $5 billion Saudi investment in Egypt was separate from money the Gulf state had deposited in the nation’s central bank.

Sovereign dollar bonds issued by the nation surged to record two-year highs. According to Tradeweb statistics, the 2059 maturity gained the most, increasing 1.35 cents to bid at 77.60 cents on the dollar by 1309 GMT.

Bidding for near-term maturities reached a maximum of 99.52 cents.

“The $5 billion investments will be in projects that will be decided mutually later in important economic sectors,” Madbouly said.

Tuesday saw a significant increase in Egypt’s bond market, pushing the country’s assets to levels last seen in early 2022. This came a day after the Egyptian cabinet announced that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had ordered the Saudi sovereign wealth fund (PIF) to invest $5 billion in Egypt in a “first stage” of the plan.

The Central Bank of Egypt has medium long-term deposits worth $5.3 billion from Saudi Arabia, according to data from the bank. Additionally, it made a $5 billion short-term deposit in 2022; it is thought that this money has since been rolled over.

In an attempt to recover from a protracted economic crisis that has resulted in record inflation, a mounting debt load, and severe currency devaluations over the last two years, Egypt has been actively seeking large-scale investments.

The North African country received a boost earlier this year when it agreed to develop a desirable portion of the Mediterranean coast with the United Arab Emirates under the terms of the Ras El Hekma contract and obtained billions of dollars in finance from foreign lenders.

Large-scale investments are currently being made in five Red Sea Coast locations by Cairo, one of which is Ras Banas, a 30-kilometer (19-mile) peninsula located in the extreme south of Egypt across from Saudi Arabia.

It is one of the few remaining undeveloped coastal areas in the nation of North Africa.

“We allocated five large areas on the Red Sea coast, we aim to develop these areas as the developmental centres established like in the Ras El Hekma deal,” he said.

Musings From Abroad

Swiss company Mercuria partners Zambia’s IDC in new metals trading firm

Published

16 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to a statement released by Swiss commodities trader, Mercuria, on Thursday, it has established a metals trading arm with Zambia, the second-largest producer of copper in Africa.

The trading unit is jointly owned by Mercuria and an arm of Zambia’s Industrial Development Company (IDC), and its purpose is to allow Zambia to engage directly in the minerals trading market.

The joint venture “envisages the establishment of a vehicle to market and trade Zambian copper by mutual leverage,” according to a statement from Cornwell Muleya, the CEO of IDC.

The southern African nation wants to increase copper output to roughly 3 million metric tonnes within the next ten years, and in 2023, it produced roughly 698,000 tonnes of copper, down from 763,000 metric tonnes the year before.

In June, the Zambian government announced that it would establish a minerals trading unit.

Investors including First Quantum Minerals and Barrick Gold are ramping up production, with output set to receive a further boost once Vedanta Resources’ Konkola Copper Mines restart activity.

“Our joint venture with IDC marks a significant milestone for Zambia as it positions itself more strategically in the global minerals market,” Kostas Bintas, Mercuria’s global head of metals and minerals, said in the statement.

Musings From Abroad

Blinken to reveal UN Sudan funding additions

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Additional financing for humanitarian aid to Sudan and initiatives to strengthen civil society in the nation, where a conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions, will be announced by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the United Nations on Thursday.

Blinken will make many announcements when he leads a UN Security Council meeting on Sudan on Thursday, which will centre on humanitarian aid and civilian protection, Deputy U.S. Representative to the UN Ned Price told reporters on Wednesday.

According to Price, the announcements would include more money for humanitarian help, initiatives to strengthen civil society, and the return of democracy.

“Sudan, unfortunately, has risked becoming a forgotten conflict,” Price said.

“So part of the reason the secretary … opted to convene a signature event on this very topic is to make sure it remains in the spotlight,” Price said.

For almost 18 months, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and Sudan’s army have been engaged in combat, resulting in a severe humanitarian crisis that has forced over 12 million people from their homes and made it difficult for U.N. organisations to provide aid.

A power struggle between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces preceded a planned shift to civilian administration, which sparked the conflict in April 2023.

Although the army declined to join this year’s U.S.-mediated peace negotiations in Geneva, the warring parties did pledge to increase assistance access, which prevented any movement towards a ceasefire.

Price stated that before President Joe Biden’s term ends next month, the United States would keep collaborating with allies to enhance humanitarian access in Sudan and eventually end hostilities.

“We are going to leave nothing on the field in our efforts to work with allies, with partners, with the Sudanese stakeholders themselves, on the issues that matter most – humanitarian access, the provision of humanitarian assistance, ultimately, the process by which we can work to get to a cessation of hostilities, which is most urgently needed,” he said.