Saudi Arabia to Produce 10GW of Wind Energy in Egypt

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and Egyptian Electricity Minister Mohammad Shaker oversee the signing of an agreement to generate electricity with wind energy on Tuesday in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and Egyptian Electricity Minister Mohammad Shaker oversee the signing of an agreement to generate electricity with wind energy on Tuesday in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia to Produce 10GW of Wind Energy in Egypt

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and Egyptian Electricity Minister Mohammad Shaker oversee the signing of an agreement to generate electricity with wind energy on Tuesday in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and Egyptian Electricity Minister Mohammad Shaker oversee the signing of an agreement to generate electricity with wind energy on Tuesday in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Egypt and Saudi Arabia signed on Tuesday a memorandum of understanding for the implementation of a 10 gigawatt wind electric power project in Egypt.

The MoU was signed between Saudi ACWA power company and Egypt’s New and Renewable Energy Authority and the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company.

The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported that Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz held a meeting in Riyadh with Egyptian Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy Mohammad Shaker.

SPA said that the two ministers discussed the progress of the electricity interconnection project between the two countries.

They also reviewed ongoing preparations for a memorandum of understanding in the fields of electricity, renewable energy and clean hydrogen, and the means to strengthen cooperation between specialized companies in both countries.

Following the meeting, the two ministers oversaw the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the NREA, the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company, and the Saudi ACWA Power, to implement a project to generate electricity from wind energy with a capacity of 10 GW in Egypt.

The Egyptian Cabinet announced late last month the intention of the Saudi company, ACWA Power, to implement a huge project to generate electricity from wind energy. It noted that this project comes within the framework of cooperation projects between Riyadh and Cairo.



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%.