Cityscape Egypt Offers Attractive Opportunities to End Market Recession

Cityscape Egypt exhibition (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Cityscape Egypt exhibition (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Cityscape Egypt Offers Attractive Opportunities to End Market Recession

Cityscape Egypt exhibition (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Cityscape Egypt exhibition (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Egypt’s property exhibition, Cityscape Egypt, concluded its events on Saturday after a huge turnout of visitors wanting to seize the chance of the various offers presented by the development and real estate companies.

The three-day exhibition was held at the Egypt International Exhibition Centre (EIEC), with the participation of about 65 exhibitors.

The managing director of Al-Futtaim Real Estate Group, Ashraf Ezzeddine, indicated that the real estate market is regaining momentum, noting that the company's operations in the Egyptian market were not affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

He indicated that the company increased the installment period from five years to eight years in some projects to keep pace with the market.

Ezzeddine told Asharq Al-Awsat in an exclusive interview, that Al-Futtaim group intends to pump over EGP5 billion in investments in its projects during the year 2021, and that it is considering a study to "build about 30 palaces, with an area of 3000 meters for each, in the Cairo Festival City project in the 5th Settlement, which may start in 2022.”

The market was able to overcome its first shock caused by the spread of the virus, according to Ezzeddine, who believes that everyone has learned their lesson.

“The repercussions of the coronavirus do not affect the company's business and basic needs must be met, especially that of housing units.”

He pointed out that the company's sales to Arabs amounted to about 20 percent, stressing that there are no plans to invest outside Cairo at the present time.

Cairo Festival City participated in the exhibition with the CFC Club, Oriana, Aura, and Podium projects.

Meanwhile, Mardev Developments began the construction of the Menorca project in the new administrative capital, with a total investment of about EGP1.5 billion.

Mardev’s Chairman, Zohdy Zahran explained that the company provides different payment systems that suit all market requirements.

Speaking on the sidelines of the exhibition, Zahran explained that the company aims to pump EGP500 million of the EGP1.850 billion investments during the fiscal year 2021.

Also, Seldar Misr launched at the exhibition “al-Jazi Egypt '' project planned over two separate plots of land with a total area of 63 acres, and an investment cost of EGP7 billion.

The entire project is self-financed and expected to be finalized by the end of 2022.

The Chairman of Seldar Egypt, Tarek El-Sayed, announced that the project was developed by one of the company’s subsidiaries, Gulf Building and Construction.

The company launched the JW Marriott Residences New Cairo, al-Jazi Gardens, and all the units have been marketed and sold within three days only, indicated Sayed.

He added that 95 percent of al-Jazi Egypt had been completed in New Cairo, and all of the housing units of the first phase of the project were sold. He indicated that the company has spent about EGP4 billion so far.



Egypt to Establish Middle East’s 1st Sodium Cyanide Plant for Gold Extraction

CEO of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI) Mohamed el-Gawsaky, received a delegation from DrasChem Specialty Chemicals (Egyptian Cabinet)
CEO of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI) Mohamed el-Gawsaky, received a delegation from DrasChem Specialty Chemicals (Egyptian Cabinet)
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Egypt to Establish Middle East’s 1st Sodium Cyanide Plant for Gold Extraction

CEO of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI) Mohamed el-Gawsaky, received a delegation from DrasChem Specialty Chemicals (Egyptian Cabinet)
CEO of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI) Mohamed el-Gawsaky, received a delegation from DrasChem Specialty Chemicals (Egyptian Cabinet)

The Egyptian government has announced the establishment of the first sodium cyanide production plant in the Middle East in Alexandria Governorate on the Mediterranean coast, with an annual production capacity of 50,000 tons and investments of $200 million in the first phase.

In a statement, the cabinet said on Saturday that CEO of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI) Mohamed el-Gawsaky met with a delegation from DrasChem Specialty Chemicals, a Private Free Zone company, to discuss the steps required to establish the company’s sodium cyanide production facility at the Sidi Kerir Petrochemicals Complex in Alexandria.

The DrasChem project plans to begin production in 2028 following the completion of the facility’s first phase, with initial investments estimated at $200 million. This phase targets the production and export of 50,000 tons of sodium cyanide annually, a key input in gold extraction.

The second phase will focus on either doubling production capacity or manufacturing additional sodium cyanide derivatives, while a third phase will target the production of sodium-ion battery components.

El-Gawsaky said the project aligns with the country’s developmental priorities, particularly those related to increasing exports, transferring and localizing advanced technology, deepening local manufacturing and creating sustainable job opportunities.

The CEO also noted that the plant would benefit from the results of Egypt's economic reform program, which has caused significant improvements in investment, trade, and logistics indicators.

El-Gawsaky urged Egyptian companies, including DrasChem, to adopt integrated, export-oriented industrial strategies, with a particular focus on African markets.

He said the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade aims to increase exports by $4 billion. The focus will be on sectors with high competitive advantages, particularly the chemicals sector.

He also highlighted that DrasChem’s sodium cyanide products are of strategic importance to gold mines in Africa, which account for about a quarter of global gold production.

Bassem El-Shemmy, Vice President for Strategic Partnerships at Austria-based Petrochemical Holding GmbH, the largest shareholder in DrasChem, said project partner Draslovka of the Czech Republic will, for the first time, transfer its proprietary technology - developed at its facilities in the US - to Africa and the Middle East.

This move, he said, will help position Egypt as a regional hub for gold extraction technologies and sodium-ion battery manufacturing, a more sustainable and cost-effective alternative to lithium-ion batteries.

For his part, Andrey Yurkevich, Deputy Managing Director for Strategy and Business Development at Petrochemical Holding GmbH, said the DrasChem facility will create up to 500 direct jobs and generate approximately $120 million in annual foreign-currency revenues.

He said that the project will enhance the stability and sustainability of local supply chains and strengthen Egypt’s regional standing as home to the first sodium cyanide production facility in both Egypt and the Middle East.


Türkiye Says to Maintain Tight Monetary Policy, Fiscal Discipline

FILE PHOTO: People shop at a green market in Istanbul, Türkiye, October 22, 2025. REUTERS/Dilara Senkaya/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People shop at a green market in Istanbul, Türkiye, October 22, 2025. REUTERS/Dilara Senkaya/File Photo
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Türkiye Says to Maintain Tight Monetary Policy, Fiscal Discipline

FILE PHOTO: People shop at a green market in Istanbul, Türkiye, October 22, 2025. REUTERS/Dilara Senkaya/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People shop at a green market in Istanbul, Türkiye, October 22, 2025. REUTERS/Dilara Senkaya/File Photo

Türkiye will maintain its tight monetary policy and keep fiscal discipline in order to further lower inflation, Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz said on Saturday.

Turkish consumer price inflation leapt to a higher-than-expected 4.84% month-on-month in January, official data showed on Tuesday, driven in part by new year price adjustments and a jump in food and non-alcoholic drinks prices. Annual inflation dipped to 30.65%.

Speaking at an event in the southeastern province of Siirt, Yilmaz said ⁠the 45-point fall in inflation since May 2024 was not enough, adding the government was on a path to further lower consumer prices.

"We will maintain our tight monetary policy, we will keep our disciplined fiscal policies, we are determined to do this. But ⁠these are not enough either. On the other hand, we have to contribute to our battle with inflation through our supply-side policies," he added, according to Reuters.

Last month, Türkiye's central bank lowered its key interest rate by a less-than-expected 100 basis points to 37%, citing firming inflation, pricing behavior and expectations that threaten the disinflation process.

After a brief policy reversal early last year due to political turmoil, the bank's ⁠rate-cutting cycle resumed in July with a 300-basis-point cut, followed by more subsequent cuts.

The bank has eased by 1,300 points since 2024, when it held rates at 50% for most of the year to wrestle down inflation expectations.

Last month, the head of the Turkish Exporters Assembly told reporters late that Türkiye's extended period of tight economic policies had hurt manufacturers, with high interest rates and costs posing risks to the country's official $282 billion export target.


India, Malaysia Renew Pledges to Boost Trade and Collaboration

Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim shakes hands with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Putrajaya on February 8, 2026. (Photo by Hasnoor Hussain / POOL / AFP)
Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim shakes hands with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Putrajaya on February 8, 2026. (Photo by Hasnoor Hussain / POOL / AFP)
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India, Malaysia Renew Pledges to Boost Trade and Collaboration

Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim shakes hands with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Putrajaya on February 8, 2026. (Photo by Hasnoor Hussain / POOL / AFP)
Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim shakes hands with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Putrajaya on February 8, 2026. (Photo by Hasnoor Hussain / POOL / AFP)

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Malaysian counterpart Anwar Ibrahim renewed pledges on Sunday to bolster trade and explore potential collaborations in semiconductors, defense and other fields.

Modi is on a two-day visit to the Southeast Asian nation, his first since the two countries elevated ties to ⁠a comprehensive strategic partnership in August 2024.

Anwar said the partnership included deep collaborations in multiple fields, including trade and investments, food security, defense, healthcare and tourism.

"It's really comprehensive, and we believe ⁠that we can advance this and execute in a speedy manner with the commitment of our both governments," he told a press conference after hosting Modi at his official residence in the administrative capital Putrajaya.

Following their meeting, Anwar and Modi also witnessed the exchange of 11 cooperation agreements, including ⁠on semiconductors, disaster management and peacekeeping, Reuters reported.

Anwar said India and Malaysia would continue efforts to promote the use of local-currency settlement for cross-border activities and expressed hope that bilateral trade would surpass last year's $18.6 billion.

Malaysia will also support India's efforts to open a consulate in Malaysia's Sabah state on Borneo island, Anwar said.