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Suez Canal to Diversify Income Sources Through Logistical Projects

An aerial view of the northern entrance to the Suez Canal in Egypt. (Reuters)
An aerial view of the northern entrance to the Suez Canal in Egypt. (Reuters)
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Suez Canal to Diversify Income Sources Through Logistical Projects

An aerial view of the northern entrance to the Suez Canal in Egypt. (Reuters)
An aerial view of the northern entrance to the Suez Canal in Egypt. (Reuters)

The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) is seeking to diversify sources of income by establishing logistical and maritime projects that serve the global trade movement in the region, announced Chairman Osama Rabie.

On Wednesday, Rabie discussed ways to enhance cooperation with the Italian shipping line with MESSINA CEO Ignazio Messina and Executive Director Stefano Messina.

Rabie lauded the longstanding relationship with MESSINA, which has recently seen an increase in the number of vessels transiting through the Suez Canal despite the challenges in the Red Sea region.

The chairman stressed the authority's commitment to boosting cooperation with its clients and leveraging collaboration to open new horizons through partnerships and investments, diversifying sources of income, and establishing logistics and maritime projects that serve global trade movements in the region.

Messina confirmed the company's intention to increase the number and capacities of its vessels transiting through the Suez Canal in the coming period.

The expansion aligns with the group's policy focus and plans to acquire and construct large-capacity container ships to operate on maritime routes in the Middle East and Africa.

The CEO expressed his eagerness to strengthen cooperation with the Suez Canal Authority.

He proposed joint efforts in providing logistical services to elevate the Suez Canal's leading position.

He also expressed a commitment to supporting the canal's transformation into a regional hub for maritime and logistical services in the Middle East and Africa.

MESSINA was established over a century ago. Since the 1930s, it has maintained cooperative relations with the Suez Canal Authority. One of the group's vessels was among the first to transit the canal after reopening in 1975.

On Monday, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi confirmed that Suez Canal revenues had dropped between 40 and 50 percent since the beginning of this year due to the disruption of navigation traffic in the Red Sea as a result of the Houthi attacks.

Rabie recently said that revenues had declined from $804 million recorded in January last year to $428 million during the same month this year, a drop of 46%.

The canal's revenues constitute one of Egypt's most prominent sources of foreign exchange revenues.

In the fiscal year 2022-2023, the channel generated $9.4 billion in revenues, the highest annual revenue recorded, a 35% increase compared to the previous year.

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US Job Growth Surges in September, Unemployment Rate Falls to 4.1%

A woman enters a store next to a sign advertising job openings at Times Square in New York City, New York, US, August 6, 2021. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo
A woman enters a store next to a sign advertising job openings at Times Square in New York City, New York, US, August 6, 2021. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo
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US Job Growth Surges in September, Unemployment Rate Falls to 4.1%

A woman enters a store next to a sign advertising job openings at Times Square in New York City, New York, US, August 6, 2021. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo
A woman enters a store next to a sign advertising job openings at Times Square in New York City, New York, US, August 6, 2021. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo

US job growth accelerated in September and the unemployment slipped to 4.1%, further reducing the need for the Federal Reserve to maintain large interest rate cuts at its remaining two meetings this year.
Nonfarm payrolls increased by 254,000 jobs last month after rising by an upwardly revised 159,000 in August, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said in its closely watched employment report on Friday.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast payrolls rising by 140,000 positions after advancing by a previously reported 142,000 in August.
The initial payrolls count for August has typically been revised higher over the past decade. Estimates for September's job gains ranged from 70,000 to 220,000.
The US labor market slowdown is being driven by tepid hiring against the backdrop of increased labor supply stemming mostly from a rise in immigration. Layoffs have remained low, which is underpinning the economy through solid consumer spending.
Average hourly earnings rose 0.4% after gaining 0.5% in August. Wages increased 4% year-on-year after climbing 3.9% in August.
The US unemployment rate dropped from 4.2% in August. It has jumped from 3.4% in April 2023, in part boosted by the 16-24 age cohort and rise in temporary layoffs during the annual automobile plant shutdowns in July.
The US Federal Reserve's policy setting committee kicked off its policy easing cycle with an unusually large half-percentage-point rate cut last month and Fed Chair Jerome Powell emphasized growing concerns over the health of the labor market.
While the labor market has taken a step back, annual benchmark revisions to national accounts data last week showed the economy in a much better shape than previously estimated, with upgrades to growth, income, savings and corporate profits.
This improved economic backdrop was acknowledged by Powell this week when he pushed back against investors' expectations for another half-percentage-point rate cut in November, saying “this is not a committee that feels like it is in a hurry to cut rates quickly.”
The Fed hiked rates by 525 basis points in 2022 and 2023, and delivered its first rate cut since 2020 last month. Its policy rate is currently set in the 4.75%-5.00% band.
Early on Friday, financial markets saw a roughly 71.5% chance of a quarter-point rate reduction in November, CME's FedWatch tool showed. The odds of a 50 basis points cut were around 28.5%.