Business Environment Strongly Improves in Egypt Despite Pandemic

A general view of Cairo, Egypt. (AFP)
A general view of Cairo, Egypt. (AFP)
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Business Environment Strongly Improves in Egypt Despite Pandemic

A general view of Cairo, Egypt. (AFP)
A general view of Cairo, Egypt. (AFP)

The headline seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Egypt PMI rose from 49.4 in August to 50.4 in September, signaling an improvement during the latest survey period.

“The result marked the first above-50.0 reading since July 2019. The latest div pointed to only a marginal improvement in business conditions, suggesting the Egyptian non-oil economy has further scope to recover to the level of performance seen prior to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic,” the report said.

"The latest Egypt PMI data offered more optimism for businesses, as the September PMI indicated an improvement in economic conditions for the first time in 14 months. While only marginally in positive territory at 50.4, the PMI was also strongly above its trend level of 48.1,” Economist at IHS Markit David Owen said.

Meanwhile, CEO of the Egyptian General Authority for Investment and Free Zones, Mohamed Abdel Wahab, and Managing Director of Sumitomo Egypt, Ahmed Magdy met and discussed the latter’s increase of its investments in Egypt by EGP1 billion, through the establishment of a new project for the company.

Abdel Wahab confirmed that the Authority provides all facilities and incentives to the company to encourage it to enter the Egyptian market, and support all companies that boost Egypt's position as a strategic hub for global supply chains, serve the national economy and provide more job opportunities.

He stressed that the Japanese company’s plans to expand in Egypt are consistent with successive international institutions’ testimonies about the Egyptian economy, and its ability to quickly recover from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, by following the economic reform program adopted by the government.



Iraq Says Iran Used Forged Iraqi Documents on Oil Tankers, Tehran Denies

FILE PHOTO: A gas flare on an oil production platform is seen alongside an Iranian flag in the Gulf July 25, 2005. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi//File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A gas flare on an oil production platform is seen alongside an Iranian flag in the Gulf July 25, 2005. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi//File Photo
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Iraq Says Iran Used Forged Iraqi Documents on Oil Tankers, Tehran Denies

FILE PHOTO: A gas flare on an oil production platform is seen alongside an Iranian flag in the Gulf July 25, 2005. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi//File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A gas flare on an oil production platform is seen alongside an Iranian flag in the Gulf July 25, 2005. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi//File Photo

Iraq's oil minister Hayan Abdel-Ghani has said told state television that Iranian oil tankers stopped by US forces in the Gulf were using forged Iraqi documents.

US President Donald Trump's administration has restored his earlier "maximum pressure" policy on Iran, reviving a policy that seeks to isolate the country from the global economy and eliminate its oil export revenue in order to slow Tehran's development of a nuclear weapon.

"We received some verbal inquiries about oil tankers being detained in the Gulf by US naval forces carrying Iraqi shipping manifests," Abdel-Ghani said on state television late on Sunday, adding there had been no formal written communication.

"It turned out that these tankers were Iranian ... and were using forged Iraqi documents. We explained this to the relevant authorities with complete transparency and they also confirmed this."

Iran's oil ministry on Monday denied that Tehran had used forged official documents and said allegations that they had done so came from US officials, the ministry's Shana news agency reported.

"It's obvious that these allegations by US officials fold into the illegal... pressure on the nation of Iran and have no basis or credibility," Shana said.

Iran views neighbor and ally Iraq as vital to keeping its economy afloat while under sanctions. But Baghdad, a partner to both Washington and Tehran, is wary of being caught in the crosshairs of Trump's policy to squeeze Iran, sources have said.

Reuters reported in December that a sophisticated fuel oil smuggling network that experts believe generates at least $1 billion a year for Iran and its proxies has flourished in Iraq in the past few years, including by using forged documentation.

Abdel-Ghani said state marketer SOMO sold crude exclusively to companies that own refineries and does not supply trading firms.

"SOMO operates with full transparency and has committed no wrongdoing in the oil export process," he said.