Egypt's Pound Weakens to New Low of 30/USD 

People buy fruits and vegetables in Cairo, Egypt, 10 January 2023. (EPA)
People buy fruits and vegetables in Cairo, Egypt, 10 January 2023. (EPA)
TT

Egypt's Pound Weakens to New Low of 30/USD 

People buy fruits and vegetables in Cairo, Egypt, 10 January 2023. (EPA)
People buy fruits and vegetables in Cairo, Egypt, 10 January 2023. (EPA)

Egypt's pound weakened on Wednesday to a new low of 30 against the US dollar after fluctuating in morning trading, Refinitiv data showed. 

Egypt committed to a flexible currency, a greater role for the private sector and a range of monetary and fiscal reforms when it agreed to a $3 billion financial support package with the International Monetary Fund, according to an IMF staff report released on Tuesday. 

The country was already under financial pressure before the war in Ukraine hurt tourism revenues and raised commodity import bills. 

Egyptian annual urban consumer inflation in December rose to 21.3%, the highest since the end of 2017, exceeding analyst expectations, data from the statistics agency CAPMAS showed on Tuesday.  



Saudi Energy Minister Emphasizes Importance of Balancing Growth, Energy Security

Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz. Photo: Energy Ministry account on X
Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz. Photo: Energy Ministry account on X
TT

Saudi Energy Minister Emphasizes Importance of Balancing Growth, Energy Security

Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz. Photo: Energy Ministry account on X
Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz. Photo: Energy Ministry account on X

Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz participated in the Energy Transitions Working Group meetings, the 15th Clean Energy Ministerial and the 9th Mission Innovation Ministerial, held this week in Foz do Iguacu, Brazil, where he emphasized the importance of balancing economic growth and energy security.
The meetings focused on sustainable energy policies and equitable energy transitions within G20 efforts to enhance international cooperation aimed at achieving environmental sustainability and supporting innovations in clean energy technologies.
Prince Abdulaziz emphasized the importance of balancing economic growth, energy security, and climate change mitigation. He highlighted the Kingdom's leadership in Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) technologies, as well as its commitment to leading by example in leveraging circular carbon economy technologies, and affirmed the Kingdom's ambition to become a global leader in the production and export of clean energy.
Prince Abdulaziz also outlined Saudi Arabia's efforts to increase its renewable energy capacity, which is expected to reach approximately 44 gigawatts by the end of 2024, and touched upon the establishment of a hydrogen production hub in Ras Al Khair Industrial City, along with a major carbon capture and storage project, which will have a capacity of 9 million tons annually by 2027.