CAIRO: Nestle Egypt recently launched a campaign that might motivate Egyptians to take a closer look at food labels and make healthy selections of food products. Under the slogan “Be at Your Best, Nestle says that balancing the needs of the body with those of the mind helps people to be at their best throughout …

CAIRO: The value of the Egyptian pound recently appreciated against the US dollar after a global downturn knocked the dollar down to a 15-year low. Within the past two weeks, the US dollar exchange rate fell from LE 5.75 to LE 5.69 and later to LE 5.64, attributed to strong foreign direct investment (FDI), a …

Construction began yesterday on the Cairo-Alexandria Desert Road, the first of four stages set to turn it into an international freeway, paving the way towards developing the interstate transportation system. The entire transformation process will cost an estimated LE 1.5 billion. The first stage will include excavation and construction work across 50 kilometers with a …

CAIRO: “Ever since last year’s increase in fuel prices, I spend an extra LE 8 each day on gasoline consumption alone, and the majority of customers does not want to bear that increase, said Atteya Eid, a Cairo taxi driver. “It wrecked my living, Eid said. Last year, the government abruptly raised the prices of …

CAIRO: Seeking to drive efficiency across the region’s banking sector, the Hawkamah Institute for Corporate Governance and the Union of Arab Banks (UAB) – in association with MasterCard Worldwide – recently announced the establishment of the “Hawkamah-UAB Bank Corporate Governance Award, the first of its kind in the Arab world. “The development and implementation of …

CAIRO: The Egyptian bourse zigzagged last week, as shares inched up and down after the Case30 Index hit record highs at the start of the week. The Case30 Index broke the threshold of 8,500 points last Sunday, reaching a new record of 8,519.5 points, as trading activities surpassed LE 1.4 billion and market capitalization soared …

CAIRO: After long anticipation, the Ministry of Communications finally granted Egyptian Mobile Operator MobiNil a high-speed 3G mobile license for LE 3.4 billion to be paid in installments, as competitor Vodafone Egypt did last January. MobiNil applied for the 3G license last week after witnessing strong market growth in previous months that outdid its operating …

The Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange (Case) confirmed it received an “obligatory tender offer from Orascom Telecom Holding (OT) to acquire 100 percent of Raya Holding’s free-floating shares on the bourse. Raya Holding has 60 percent of its total shares floating on the Case, and OT proposed to purchase all of them – equivalent to …

CAIRO: Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif announced Monday that he expects that privatization of Banque Du Caire to raise more than $1.6 billion. The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) anticipated the revenues from the purchase of Banque Du Caire would exceed that of the Bank of Alexandria, which sold for $1.6 billion, as the former was …

CAIRO: During his visit to Spain – which began last week – Minister of Foreign Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamed Rachid looked to further extend economic and trade ties with Spain, saying that its unprecedented economic growth offered various opportunities for Egypt’s economy to grow as well. Egypt seeks to attract $1 billion worth of …

CAIRO: In a step that further allows foreign investors to gain exposure into the Egyptian market, Minister of Finance Youssef Botrous Ghali unveiled plans to increase issuance of Egypt’s five-year bond before the end of this year. Tracking a positive tone in Egyptian bonds, Egypt sold Thursday $1.05 billion worth of a five-year global bond …

CAIRO: Sixth of October Development and Investment Company (SODIC) signed a LE 300 million deal with Bonyan Development and Trading Company – a subsidiary of Citadel Capital – whereby Bonyan bought 116,824 square meters of SODIC s west Cairo land for the development of a state-of-the-art furniture and accessories strip mall. The land was valued …

CAIRO: To further develop agribusiness in Egypt, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), signed an agreement with Wadi Holdings Group – one of Egypt’s largest integrated agribusiness companies – in a bid to support its expansion plans. “Agribusiness is a key sector for IFC in emerging markets, helping increase opportunities for people living in rural areas, …

The latest public-private partnerships initiative aims to provide low-income citizens with the chance to own homes in new cities such as Shorouk City, Sheikh Zayed, Sixth of October, and Obour City, confirmed Minister of Housing Ahmed El-Maghraby. A number of land plots in these cities were sold to 64 investors in order to develop houses …

Aiming at promoting a “higher class of living, Emaar Egypt will commence next Sunday public sale of its prime real-estate project, Uptown Cairo. “Starting this Sunday, we will begin official sale of phase one of the project, which encompasses 400 residential units, said Mohamed El-Moshneb, Emaar Properties director in charge. “The first phase constitutes eight …

CAIRO: In a major leap forward for its long-running banking reform agenda, the government announced that it will offer an 80 percent stake of the country s third largest public sector bank, Banque Du Caire, to a strategic investor. Only 15 percent of the bank’s stakes will be sold through an IPO, while its employees …

Starbucks Egypt donated 20 percent of its first month’s sales in a bid to promote literacy in Egypt. Member of Alshaya Retail Group, Starbucks Egypt joined forces with 4-OurKidz – an Egyptian NGO – to support educational programs for unprivileged youth by building Knowledge Corners at local school libraries. The first Knowledge Corner was established …

CAIRO: Minister of Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamed Rachid began Sunday a one-week visit to Spain – the first official visit of its kind for more than a decade -in a bid to promote bilateral political and economic ties and further boost Spanish investment into Egypt. “Egypt has long enjoyed good political and strategic relations …

CAIRO: Almost two months after launching its mobile operations in the country, Etisalat Egypt plans to bid for the second landline network license, again demonstrating its confidence in Egypt’s evergreen telecom market. “The backbone of our strategy is to provide various services across the entire communications sector rather than limiting ourselves to mobile operations only, …

CAIRO: Companies and factories that reduce carbon dioxide emissions and apply environmentally friendly practices are in for a monetary reward in an effort to promote “clean business techniques. “For each ton of reduced CO2 emissions, companies receive a certificate, which acts as a bankable commodity sold in the open market or in financial institutions such …

CAIRO: Pursuing new investment opportunities, expanding advisory services, and supporting private sector-led growth across the region, the International Finance Corporation – private sector arm of the World Bank Group – recently announced new transactions that pushed its annual investments in the Middle East and North Africa region above the $1 billion mark for the first …

IBM Egypt, in partnership with Bibliotheca Alexandrina, launched Monday a cooperation agreement that will utilize virtual reality techniques to examine the adverse impacts of Cairo’s climate on the Sphinx, one of the world’s most renowned monuments. Located on the Giza Plateau, the Sphinx, dates back over 4,500 years to the Old Kingdom and the time …

CAIRO: Emaar Egypt s sales center – featuring true-to-type models of the Uptown Cairo real estate project – will soon open to the public and start receiving visitors and potential buyers. The center will showcase virtual models and prototypes of villas, apartments, in addition to various archetypes of leisure and entertainment complexes. Spread over 4 …

Whether it’s the heat-resistant handles on your kitchenware, the knobs on your cooking stove, fans for your washing machine, or even brake shoes for your vehicle, odds are, you use a piece of an MRI product in your everyday life. Mansoura for Resins and Chemical Industries (MRI) produces chemicals and raw material used by other …

CAIRO: Egypt’s unbankable poor, low-income families as well as small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are now able to utilize their ingenuity to climb out of poverty and generate more income via microfinance facilities provided under the umbrella of the European Union and the Social Fund for Development. With poverty rates plaguing a significant proportion of …

CAIRO: Emaar Egypt, fully owned subsidiary of the Dubai-based property developer, appointed Sameh Muhtadi as chief executive officer to undertake implementation of the group’s four projects in Egypt, as well as map out new areas for construction and growth, Emaar announced at a press conference Wednesday. “Muhtadi has proven global experience and expertise in delivering …

CAIRO: Egypt’s workforce may soon place a firm foothold on the global map by turning products marked with the “Made in Egypt label into strong selling points. This is the objective of an EU-funded project aims to train and expose the country’s labor to new means by which to upgrade their skills and production lines. …

CAIRO: Ian Gray, managing director and chief executive officer of Vodafone Egypt, will succeed Mohamed Nosseir in leading Vodafone Egypt starting next September. Nossier expressed his will to step down from chairing Vodafone Egypt’s board of directors after holding his position for nine years – ever since establishment of the company in 1998. Besides his …

CAIRO: Despite analysts’ initial skepticism, Egypt’s mobile users have been receptive to 3G services and the number of subscribers is actually on the rise, with Vodafone taking the lead at 800,000 subscribers. “We are very pleased to announce that the number of 3G subscribers has reached 800,000 users, and we will work on further increasing …

CAIRO: With the ambition of turning Omar Effendi department store into the crown jewel of the entire Egyptian retail sector as it once was, Anwal United Trading Company has shifted gear towards upgrading the store’s outlets. “Our vision is to make Omar Effendi Egypt’s leading department store, second to none, said Jameel Al-Gnaibit, Omar Effendi’s …