Multiples Insights

Issue No. 225

06 May 2019

This report is designed to give you a snapshot about the MENA region tackling multiple issues:

72.85 USD 1,281 USD

	/USD	/EUR
EGP	17.18	19.23
AED	3.67	4.11
QAR	3.64	4.07
SAR	3.75	4.20
BHD	0.38	0.42
OMR	0.38	0.43

Economic Outlook

Egypt Central Bank will auction today 1 BN USD (17.16 BN EGP) worth of one-year dollar-denominated T-bills. The auction will be settled by tomorrow when dollar T-bills worth 1.1 BN USD (18.87 BN EGP) are due to mature.
Egypt Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for the non-oil private sector strengthened to 50.8 in April 2019 compared to 49.9 in March 2019.
Egypt plans to attract investments worth 200 BN USD (3.4 TR EGP) within the next four years. The government also aims to attract further foreign direct investments (FDI) worth 47 BN USD (806.6 BN EGP) approximately.
Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) has announced its plan to deposit 250 MM USD (915.2 MM AED) into the Central Bank of Sudan (CBOS) to secure increased liquidity and strengthen the financial position of Sudan.
UAE is viewed by 44% of young Arabs as a model nation and the number one country to live in, followed by Canada (22%), United States (21%), Turkey (17%) and the United Kingdom (15%) based on the 11 ASDA'A BCW Arab Youth Survey.
The value of Bahrain national origin exports increased by 9% reaching 587 MM BHD (1.54 BN USD) in Q1-2019 compared to 538 MM BHD (1.42 BN USD) for Q1-2018.
Qatar has set its April retroactive official selling price (OSP) for its Marine crude at 71.80 USD per barrel which increased by 4.25 USD per barrel compared to March 2019. Qatar also set its April Qatar Land crude OSP at 71.95 USD, up 4.35 USD compared to March 2019.
Qatar Central Bank sold 600 MM QAR (164.7 MM USD) of T-bills at an auction. It sold 300 MM QAR (82.3 MM USD) of three-month bills at 2.39%, 200 MM QAR (54.9 MM USD) of six-month bills at 2.47% and 100 MM QAR (27.4 MM USD) of nine-month bills at 2.54%.

Political Events

The UAE and Peru signed a mutual pre-entry visa exemption agreement covering all categories of passports. The signing took place at the headquarters of the Peruvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Egypt Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced that Egyptian companies are ready to enter tenders that will be announced by the Lebanese government, in order to implement projects within its electricity sector.

Major Companies Transaction

Egypt Global Telecom Holding (GTH) reported an increase by 59.38% in Q1-2019 net profit reaching 51 MM USD (875.3 MM EGP) compared to 32 MM USD (549.2 MM EGP) in Q1-2018.
ROOT Technologies, the organizer of Cairo Technology Week (www.CairoTechWeek.com), has announced the dates for the upcoming round of Cairo Technology Week. The most exclusive technology conference and exhibition is set to take place 17-19 June 2019 in Cairo, Egypt.
PepsiCo, the global food and beverage company, announced Kilo for Khair campaign in partnership with the Saudi Food Bank. The company will donate one box of essential food items through Saudi Food Bank for every healthy kilo the employees lose between March and May 2019 aiming to promote kindness and health throughout Ramadan.
Saudi Telecom has issued 1.25 BN USD (4.6 BN SAR) in international sukuk, or Islamic bonds which will be listed on the Irish Stock Exchange, offering a 3.89% return.
Dubai Emaar Properties reported a 7.2% increase in Q1-2019 net profit reaching 1.74 BN AED (474 MM USD) compared to 1.63 BN AED (443.7 MM USD) in Q1-2018. supported by a significant jump in sales.
Dubai Investments announced net profit of 202 MM AED (54.9 MM USD) in Q1-2019 compared to 362 MM AED (98.5 MM USD) in Q1-2018. Including an overall gain of 333 MM AED (90.6 MM USD) on acquisition of stake in Emirates District Cooling, Emicool.
Qatar Science & Technology Park (QSTP) renewed its partnership agreement with Cisco Qatar for a further five years, with the aim of continuing both entities' commitment to accelerating the pace of digital transformation in Qatar.
Vodafone Qatar and Huawei have entered into a strategic agreement to significantly expand and enhance Vodafone Qatar entire wireless network infrastructure including a large scale 5G technology rollout.

Sports and Culture

Lionel Messi put Barcelona on the top of the Champions League semi-final by scoring an incredible free kick against Liverpool by bringing up his 600^th goal.
Egyptian photographer Heba Khamis won second prize for the people singles category in the 2019 "World Press Photo" contest for her latest project "Black Birds". This win makes Khamis the first Egyptian female photojournalist to be granted the prestigious award.

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