CAIRO: “Everything is running as normal, chairman of the Real Estate Tax Office Ismail Abdel Rasoul told Daily News Egypt on Thursday, emphasizing that the strikes by tax collectors have ended. Although Abdel Rasoul claims that the total number of strikers was only about 300-400 out of 45,000, other news reports put the number at …

CAIRO: In a bid to expand private healthcare in Egypt, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) ¬- the private sector arm of the World Bank Group – signed Wednesday a cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia’s Andalusia Group to provide a $15 million loan as well as another $10 million in equity. The agreement seeks to address …

CAIRO: Land Rover has achieved yet another record – with the most successful sales month in its history, both globally and across the Middle East. In September, the SUV manufacturer sold 26,000 vehicles globally, a 34 percent increase, and 988 vehicles across the Middle East region, a 36 percent increase up on September sales last …

CAIRO: At a lavish celebration with top aviation officials and loyal British Airways (BA) customers, the blue and red airline launched their new Club World (CW) seat, which will be available on all London-Cairo flights. Promising utmost comfort, luxury and privacy, the new CW seat is available in business class cabins and allows passengers to …

CAIRO: The increase of internet users and the growing dependence on the medium have put Internet Service Providers (ISPs) under the spotlight, especially with subscribers voicing discontent with the type of service they pay for. The time taken to install the service and inadequate technical support lead the list of complaints. It might take up …

CAIRO: Sorouh Real Estate unveiled the world’s largest poster that aims to raise funds for the Red Crescent, part of its commitment to corporate social responsibility. Within the next few months, Sorouh plans to collect one million faces to be placed on the poster. Anyone can upload their pictures at no cost by visiting the …

CAIRO: Minister of Communications and Information Technology Tarek Kamel is heading to the Rwandan capital Kigali leading a high-level official delegation to participate in the Connect Africa Summit from Oct. 29-30, according to a ministry press release. The Egyptian delegation includes senior officials from the National Telecommunications Institute (NTI), the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA) …

CAIRO: The Egyptian-Chinese Company will start manufacturing 2000-horse power onshore oil rigs in Egypt before the end of this year, the Ministry of Petroleum announced. Entering into a new era that will see an growth in exploration and production of oil and gas, Egypt is keen on responding to the industry’s challenges by becoming a …

CAIRO: Research and investigation on steel companies charged with monopolistic and anti-competitive practices are still pending, says the Egyptian Competition Authority (ECA). “Contrary to what has been reported in [local press], our board of directors has not yet taken any decision regarding charges filed against steel companies, said Ibrahim Ahmed, head of information at the …

CAIRO: Egyptian Information and Communications Technology (ICT) companies will participate in the Systems 2007 exhibition in Munich, Germany Oct. 23-26, announced the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA). Systems is the leading business-to-business trade fair for IT, media and communications, held in Europe’s largest high-tech and media venue. “Systems is one of the world’s key …

CAIRO: The International Finance Corporation’s (IFC) advisory services across the region soared, providing more than $17 million during fiscal year 2007, up from $14.7 million in FY06 and $5.7 million in FY05, according to its recently released annual report. As of the end of fiscal year 2007, PEP-MENA – IFC’s multi-donor facility for advisory services …

CAIRO: The National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA) has announced the procedures, conditions and rules governing the licenses of international telecommunications gateway liberalization. The NTRA’s board of directors had approved the framework of international telecom gateways liberalization in reference to the Telecommunications Regulation Law no.10/2003 that stipulates the end of Telecom Egypt’s monopoly of providing international …

CAIRO: Egypt ranks as the top African nation in terms of foreign direct investment (FDI) flows, beating South Africa for the first time, according to the World Investment Report 2007 published by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). “FDI into Africa doubled between 2004 and 2006 to a record $36 billion, spurred …

MINYA: Silence dawned on the small village of Bani Hassan in Minya province after at least 13 people, including three children, drowned in a ferry accident on the first day of Eid Al Fitr. The families of those who got on the ferry to cross from the western to the eastern bank of the Nile …

ABU DHABI: The oil-rich Gulf emirate of Abu Dhabi hosted its maiden film festival this week as it vies to become a regional cinema hub with plans to open a branch of the New York Film Academy. “We will build the infrastructure necessary to enable you to shoot your movies here, Abu Dhabi Film Commission …

CAIRO: Minister of Petroleum Sameh Fahmi stressed the importance of strengthening Egyptian-European ties in the petroleum sector and elaborated on Egypt’s role as a pioneer in the oil and gas domain during the Euro-Mediterranean Dialogue on Energy held in Brussels this week. Fahmi met with energy representatives from 27 countries – 20 representing the European …

CAIRO: bmi, Heathrow’s second largest airline, will launch a new daily non-stop service from Cairo to London Heathrow beginning Nov. 4, the company announced in a press release. Flights have been available for bookings since early September. bmi has entered a code-share agreement with EgyptAir whereby passengers flying EgyptAir will soon be able to accumulate …

NEW YORK: Fox News has asked a federal judge to dismiss a satellite pay television operator s claim that it was cheated out of a chance to deliver the network s conservative, American editorial perspective to its Middle East customers. Orbit Communications Co. Limited is suing the Fox News Network, saying it improperly backed out …

PARIS: Egyptair said on Tuesday it has been admitted as a member of the Star Alliance group of airlines. Following the successful conclusion of membership talks with Egyptair, the chief executive board of Star Alliance has voted to accept as a future member, the national airline of Egypt, the airline said in a statement received …

CAIRO: For a few months, the local press has reported figures reflecting a pessimistic outlook on furniture exports in Egypt, claiming that exports have decreased by 60 percent. These claims were disproved by key players in the furniture industry who confirmed an unprecedented boom in furniture exports in the past couple of years, citing official …

CAIRO: Egypt s largest software professional services company ITWorx has allotted at least $3 million for its new operations in Dubai and Doha beginning this month and by the end of this year respectively, according to a statement released to the press. ITWorx President Wael Amin said the budget includes the money spent last year …

VOULIAGMENI, Greece: An EU official said on Monday that billions of euros designated for strengthening European-Mediterranean cooperation were going untapped due to a lack of know-how within many partner countries. Dimitris Dimitriadis, president of the European Economic and Social Committee that oversees the Euromed Partnership, said potential recipient states don t have the knowledge to …

CAIRO: Mobile advertising is exhibiting strong potential in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, with 64 percent of respondents believing it will mirror the successes of internet advertising, finds a survey conducted by Acision, a leader in intuitive messaging, intelligent charging, and content enablement. The survey revealed that mobile advertising was already taking …

CAIRO: Due to recent reforms, developments, increasing population, and high oil rates, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has recently become a very promising platform for future investments. In the early 70s, many US companies were aware of this fact early and subsequently decided to penetrate this market, achieving substantial success. Throughout the …

CAIRO: The Arab League will organize an Arab economic summit before the end of 2008 to discuss several topics including education, health, investment, trade and communications, said Amr Moussa, secretary general of the League of Arab States. “The Arab world has to establish its presence both politically and economically, he explained. “Arab states need to …

CAIRO: Rising from dilapidation and heavy financial losses, Omar Effendi – Egypt’s oldest department store – is setting itself up to become Egypt’s version of Marks & Spencer. Its new owner vows to turn it into the crown jewel of Egypt’s retail sector. The well-known name dates back to the early 20th century; and with …

CAIRO: Egypt will host the Global Public Policy Conference (GPPC) 2007, an international Communications and Information Technology (CIT) event, from from Nov. 4-6, 2007. Under the auspices of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), the conference, which is organized every two years by World Information Technology and Services Alliance (WITSA), will focus on …

CAIRO: Egypt signed a concession agreement for the exploration and production of oil and gas in the Mesaha area of Upper Egypt last week. Minister of Petroleum Sameh Fahmi witnessed the signing of the agreement between consortium members Melrose Resources of the UK, Hellenic Petroleum of Greece and Oil Search of Australia, the State Authority …

CAIRO: Until a few years ago, it was easy to count all Cairo s coffeehouses on one hand. That’s not the case anymore, with tens of coffeehouse chains and hundreds of outlets opening up all over town. Competition in the coffeehouse market intensified when several international chains – namely Starbucks, Coffee Bean and Second Cup …