Egypt

The government’s attempts to meet Egypt’s budgetary shortfalls have comprised three broad strands: the sale of government bonds in the domestic market, securing sovereign grants from friendly nations, and attempting to secure a financing package through the IMF, which could help open the door to additional developmental aid from international...

Effectively priced out of the international bond market, the Ministry of Finance has been compelled to turn to the domestic banking sector to meet the demands of the state budget. For local banks faced with reduced borrowing demand, the easy yield offered by a steady supply of treasury bills (T-bills) represents an attractive route to growth....

One big factor that contributed to the 2011 revolution in Egypt was the increasing sense of alienation and disempowerment felt by the country’s poor, who in Egypt tend to be concentrated in rural districts away from the main urban centres of Cairo and Alexandria. As a result, in recent years there has been a growing recognition of the role that...

Like many emerging markets, Egypt’s economic structure is dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Estimates vary, but sources such as the OECD and Egypt’s General Authority for Investment (GAFI) assert that they account for between 80% and 90% of total businesses, and between 75% and 80% of total employment in the country.

The past few years have seen ebbs and flows in investor sentiment towards emerging market, but one of the consistently bright performers has been the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector, a catch-all segment that encompasses food, beverage, cosmetic, apparel and household products. FMCG sales are driven almost wholly by domestic household...