Saudi Arabia Wishes to Explore Investment Opportunities in Egypt's Real Estate

Saudi-Egyptian Real Estate Forum in Cairo (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi-Egyptian Real Estate Forum in Cairo (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia Wishes to Explore Investment Opportunities in Egypt's Real Estate

Saudi-Egyptian Real Estate Forum in Cairo (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi-Egyptian Real Estate Forum in Cairo (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia plans to enhance cooperation and expand in Egypt during the coming period, announced the head of the Saudi National Real Estate Committee.

Speaking at the Saudi-Egyptian Real Estate Forum, Chairman Mohammad al-Murshed asserted the strong desire to boost and expand cooperation with Egypt by taking advantage of the investment opportunities offered in the real estate sector.

He said the Saudi economy witnessed positive growth in all economic fields over the past years, leading to many local and global achievements.

Saudi Arabia is among the 20 largest economies worldwide, and its products have reached more than 140 global markets.

Murshed stated that the Saudi government led by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman, is establishing initiatives, programs, and giant projects that contribute to achieving Vision 2030, which aims to diversify sources of income, attract more local and international investments to the Saudi market, and create strategic partnerships.

He listed several important projects in Saudi Arabia, such as the NEOM project, the Red Sea, Qiddiya, Amaala, the projects of the Ministry of Housing, and other giant projects in which the real estate sector plays a prominent and vital role.

Murshed invited Egyptian business owners to benefit from these opportunities by creating strategic partnerships with Saudi business owners.

Meanwhile, Egypt's Minister of Public Business Sector, Hisham Tawfik, praised in his opening speech the developments in the Kingdom and Egypt, highlighting the insightful vision of the two countries' leadership.

The minister reviewed the partnership policies of the Egyptian government with investors and developers and investment opportunities in Egypt's real estate.

Moreover, Deputy Minister of Housing, Utilities, and Urban Communities for Egyptian National Projects Khaled Abbas pointed to the importance of boosting cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Egypt in all economic and commercial fields, including real estate.

The Egyptian Businessmen Association organized the second Saudi Egyptian Real Estate Forum in cooperation with the Saudi Chambers Federation and Saudi Egyptian Businessmen Council.

It was inaugurated under the patronage of Egypt's Prime Minister Mustafa Madbooly. Saudi ambassador to Egypt Osamah bin Ahmed Nugali and representatives of giant Saudi and Egyptian real estate companies were also at the forum.

Chairman of the Construction and Building Committee of the Egyptian Businessmen Association, Fathallah Fawzy, said that Saudi Arabia is one of the top countries investing in Egypt in various fields, with investments worth approximately $32 billion.

Fawzy recalled that the real estate sector generated about EGP240 billion in 2021, asserting that Egypt looks forward to the great opportunities available for Saudi investment.

On Sunday, a delegation of the Real Estate National Committee affiliated with the Federation of Saudi Chambers, chaired by Murshed, met in Cairo with the CEO of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI), Mohamed Abdel-Wahab.

During the meeting, the two sides reviewed the available investment opportunities and the chances of opening new areas for mutual investments between the two countries.

The delegation included representatives of 27 major Saudi companies in real estate development, industry, agriculture, and construction materials.



Copper Crawls Higher on Softer Dollar and Supply Issues

FILE PHOTO: A coil of copper rod sits on the production line for copper flat wire at the Wellascent factory in Ganzhou, Jiangxi province, China, August 14, 2025. REUTERS/Florence Lo/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A coil of copper rod sits on the production line for copper flat wire at the Wellascent factory in Ganzhou, Jiangxi province, China, August 14, 2025. REUTERS/Florence Lo/File Photo
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Copper Crawls Higher on Softer Dollar and Supply Issues

FILE PHOTO: A coil of copper rod sits on the production line for copper flat wire at the Wellascent factory in Ganzhou, Jiangxi province, China, August 14, 2025. REUTERS/Florence Lo/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A coil of copper rod sits on the production line for copper flat wire at the Wellascent factory in Ganzhou, Jiangxi province, China, August 14, 2025. REUTERS/Florence Lo/File Photo

Copper prices edged higher on Friday, supported by a weaker dollar and supply issues, but gains were modest due to worries about high oil prices hitting demand.

Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 0.5% to $14,319 a metric ton in official open-outcry trading. That marked a decline of 2% since the end of last week.

"Metals have seen light turnover again so far this session with copper finding some support with a slightly softer dollar, but the broader tone remains cautious," Neil Welsh, head of metals at broker Britannia Global Markets, said in a note.

"High energy costs stemming from the ⁠ongoing US-Iran conflict and ⁠signs of industrial weakness in China have weighed on sentiment across the complex."

The dollar index hit its strongest in 17 months this week, but weakened on Friday, making commodities priced in the US currency cheaper for buyers using other currencies.

LME copper has gained 16% over the past six months, largely due to a large shift in ⁠inventories to the US attracted by the prospect of tariffs there, creating shortages elsewhere.

Stocks in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange <CU-STX-SGH> have slumped by 79% over the past four months to 38,744 tons, their lowest since January 2024.

The SHFE was closed for China's National Day and will reopen on October 8.

The prospect of less output in the world's largest copper producer Chile has also underpinned the market, with data on Wednesday showing production fell 12.8% year-on-year in August.

Supervisors at Chile's Escondida copper mine, the world's largest, rejected a collective ⁠contract offer, ⁠paving the way for a potential strike and adding to supply fears.

"This adds to an overall slump in output, as the industry struggles to maintain aging infrastructure amid difficult operating conditions," Reuters quoted Daniel Hynes, senior commodity strategist at ANZ, as saying in a note.

Among other metals, LME aluminium dipped 0.1% in official activity to $3,121.50 a ton and nickel also shed 0.1% to $15,620.

Zinc rose 0.2% to $3,732.50, lead ticked 0.3% higher to $1,863 and tin was little changed at $54,350.


Eurozone Inflation Hits Three-year High at 3.8% in September

FILE PHOTO: The logo of the European Central Bank (ECB) is pictured outside its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, April 26, 2018. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The logo of the European Central Bank (ECB) is pictured outside its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, April 26, 2018. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File Photo
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Eurozone Inflation Hits Three-year High at 3.8% in September

FILE PHOTO: The logo of the European Central Bank (ECB) is pictured outside its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, April 26, 2018. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The logo of the European Central Bank (ECB) is pictured outside its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, April 26, 2018. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File Photo

Eurozone inflation jumped to 3.8 percent in September, the highest level in three years, as the war in the Middle East fueled a surge in energy costs, official data showed Friday.

The figure for the 21-country euro area was up sharply from 3.2 percent in August and remains well above the European Central Bank's two-percent target, raising the likelihood of another interest rate increase.

The September reading published by the statistical office of the European Union was slightly higher than the 3.7 percent forecast by economists for Bloomberg.

As the US war against Iran drags on, the conflict has caused major disruptions to fuel supplies from the Middle East, including from the Strait of Hormuz, a key energy trade route.

Energy price increases surged to 18.8 percent in September, up from 14.3 percent a month earlier, AFP quoted Eurostat as saying.

Core inflation, which strips out volatile energy and food prices, rose to 2.5 percent last month from 2.4 percent in August.

Meanwhile, food and drinks inflation increased to 1.4 percent from 1.1 percent in August.

Eurozone inflation was last above 3.8 percent in September 2023, when it stood at 4.3 percent.


World Food Prices Near Four-year High in September

A street food vendor pushes a cart along the road in Ho Chi Minh City on October 2, 2026. (Photo by Nhac NGUYEN / AFP)
A street food vendor pushes a cart along the road in Ho Chi Minh City on October 2, 2026. (Photo by Nhac NGUYEN / AFP)
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World Food Prices Near Four-year High in September

A street food vendor pushes a cart along the road in Ho Chi Minh City on October 2, 2026. (Photo by Nhac NGUYEN / AFP)
A street food vendor pushes a cart along the road in Ho Chi Minh City on October 2, 2026. (Photo by Nhac NGUYEN / AFP)

World food prices rose in September to their highest in nearly four years as logistics disruptions and weather concerns affected crop markets, the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization said.

Fears about a severe El Nino weather pattern have pushed international sugar prices to an 18-month high, while a war-related collapse in Black Sea trade pushed wheat futures to a three-year peak early last month.

The FAO ⁠Food Price Index, ⁠which tracks monthly changes in international prices for a basket of food commodities, averaged 136.0 points, up from a revised 134.0 for August and the highest reading since November 2022.

FAO's benchmarks for cereal, sugar and vegetable oil ⁠prices all rose last month, though meat and dairy quotations fell.

“We are seeing a persistent and increasingly broad-based build up in global commodity prices, as disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and the Black Sea combine with climate shocks, putting pressure on energy, transport and key food commodities,” FAO Chief Economist Maximo Torero said, according to Reuters.

“If sustained, these pressures will soon pass through to consumer food ⁠prices, especially ⁠in food and energy import-dependent countries,” he said in a statement.

In a separate report, FAO kept its forecast for global cereal production in 2026 almost unchanged at 2.979 billion metric tons, 2.1% below the previous year's peak but still the second-largest harvest on record.

FAO cut its forecast for world cereal trade in 2026/27 by 0.7% from September, citing lower wheat and maize export expectations due largely to constrained Black Sea shipping routes.