After more than two years of economic pressures and extensive reforms, Egypt appears to be entering a new stage marked by improving macroeconomic indicators and growing investor confidence. Inflation has moderated, economic growth has accelerated, and foreign exchange shortages that once constrained activity have largely eased. Whether these gains represent a durable shift from stabilization to sustainable growth remains a key question. To assess the outlook, Business Monthly spoke with Mohamed Abu Basha, Director and Head of Macroeconomic Analysis at EFG Hermes, and Hany Genena, Head of Research at Al Ahly Pharos. Signs of a broader economic recovery Recent indicators…
Author: Rana Salem
Egypt’s capital market is preparing for the next phase of its derivatives journey, with the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) set to launch single-stock futures contracts on June 18, expanding the range of risk-management tools available to investors and advancing the market’s broader modernization agenda. The rollout follows the March 1 introduction of EGX30 index futures, which marked the exchange’s first foray into derivatives trading. The upcoming expansion shifts the focus from broad market exposure to individual companies, allowing investors to hedge positions in specific stocks without liquidating their underlying holdings. “The problem with our market was that there was no way…
As global investors navigate an increasingly uncertain environment shaped by geopolitical tensions, shifting trade routes, and evolving supply-chain strategies, Egypt is drawing growing international attention. In an interview with Business Monthly on the sidelines of Standard Chartered Bank’s Global Research Briefing in Cairo on June 10, Bader Al Sarraf, Research Analyst and Associate Director at Standard Chartered Bank, explained why the country is becoming increasingly attractive to global investors and multinational companies despite regional volatility. The interview took place during an exclusive media roundtable organized by Standard Chartered to discuss its latest Global Research Briefing report, which examined Egypt’s economic…
Egypt is shifting its industrial strategy away from broad import substitution and toward integrating into global supply chains, with plans to increase non-oil exports from approximately $48 billion today to $100 billion by 2030, Minister of Industry Khaled Hashem said during an American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt luncheon on June 9 titled “Egypt’s Industrial Future: Scaling Growth, Competitiveness & Regional Leadership”. “We’re not going to localize everything. It doesn’t make sense. Nobody does that,” Hashem said. Instead, the Ministry of Industry is identifying highly specific industrial opportunities down to the eight-digit Harmonized System (HS) code level to determine which…
Egypt has signed a $420 million agreement with regional renewable energy developer Alcazar Energy to invest in, operate, and modernize the 580-megawatt Jabal El-Zeit wind farm, marking one of the largest renewable energy transactions under the government’s state ownership reform program. Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly witnessed the signing of the investment, operation, and power purchase agreements on June 8 between the New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA), the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC), and Alcazar Energy, according to a Cabinet statement. The agreement forms part of Egypt’s State Ownership Policy Document, which aims to expand private-sector participation in the economy…
Egypt is increasingly emerging as one of the region’s strongest economic recovery stories as reforms aimed at stabilizing the economy, improving debt management, and attracting investment begin to produce visible results. The momentum gained further support after S&P Global Ratings affirmed Egypt’s sovereign rating at “B/B” with a stable outlook, signaling growing confidence in the country’s reform trajectory despite ongoing regional and global economic pressures. The ratings agency noted that Egypt entered the latest period of geopolitical tensions with “stronger external buffers than in previous crises,” citing higher foreign reserves, IMF support, improved foreign assets in the banking sector, and…
Artificial intelligence (AI) may be advancing rapidly worldwide, but in the Arab world, one of the most commercially important gaps in the AI economy remains unresolved: language. Across Egypt’s banking sector, customer service centers, retail platforms, and small- to medium-sized (SME) operations, businesses are increasingly discovering that most global AI systems still struggle to fully understand how Arabs actually speak, search, negotiate, complain, and consume. While English-language AI models are evolving into highly sophisticated business tools, Arabic interactions, particularly dialect-heavy conversations and voice applications, often remain inconsistent, unnatural, or operationally unreliable. The consequences are no longer merely technical inconveniences. They…
As artificial intelligence reshapes labor markets and demand for skills accelerates globally, Egypt’s education sector is increasingly being viewed not simply as a social service, but as economic infrastructure tied directly to employability, productivity, and long-term competitiveness. The shift comes amid a broader education reform wave underway in Egypt over recent years, including the rollout of new curriculum frameworks, the expansion of applied technology schools, and efforts to modernize technical and vocational education pathways. Policymakers increasingly frame education not only as a social priority, but as a long-term investment in human capital, innovation, and economic competitiveness. That shift was at…
Education investors and business leaders at the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt education conference said Egypt is approaching a turning point in education reform, driven by artificial intelligence, entrepreneurship, vocational training, and its demographic advantage. During Session I, “Entrepreneurial Investors Shaking Egypt’s Education Landscape,” speakers argued that traditional memorization-based education models are rapidly becoming obsolete as AI reshapes labor markets and future skill requirements. The session featured Ahmed Tarek, Chairman, B-Well Holding and Co-founder, Next Era Education; Mohamed Farouk, Chairman & CEO, Mobica Furniture Company; Chairman of NextEra Education; and Co-founder, Learn; and was moderated by Ihab Rizk, Founder…
Egypt is increasingly positioning education reform as a central pillar of its long-term economic strategy, as government officials, business leaders, and education experts call for deeper alignment between education outcomes, labor market needs, and future competitiveness. The push forms part of a broader reform wave that has accelerated in recent years, as Egypt seeks to modernize its education system to better prepare students for an economy increasingly shaped by technology, digital transformation, and evolving workforce demands. Authorities have introduced a new curriculum framework designed to move beyond rote memorization toward critical thinking, creativity, problem solving, and digital literacy, reflecting a…