CAIRO: Emirates developer Damac Properties launched its operations in Egypt July 17, under the slogan “Live the Luxury. Damac plans to implement three projects in Egypt: one on the Red Sea, another in Sixth of October City, and the third in New Cairo, said Damac’s Chairman and Founder Hussain Sajwani. “Egypt is well on the …

CAIRO: Egyptian hotel company Sharm Dreams for Tourism Investment said on Tuesday it would re-open subscription to an uncovered portion of its capital increase, a company official said. In the original offering, which ended in early June, shareholders subscribed to only 4.14 million of the offered capital increase shares, with 1.86 million shares still remaining. …

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: Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) Governor Farouk El-Okdah said on Monday he expected a further drop in the country s rate of inflation by the end of 2007. The inflation rate is now 8 percent and is expected to drop to 7 percent in August and under that by the end of the year, …

CAIRO: Egypt s oil ministry signed eight deals for oil and natural gas exploration worth $660 million on Tuesday with several foreign firms including BP, Austria s OMV and Norway s Statoil. The ministry said in a statement the exploration deals cover an area of 34,000 square kms, including offshore fields in the Mediterranean Sea, …

Intel Corporation introduced its first Intel Core 2 Extreme mobile dual-core processor – the world’s highest-performing mobile processor, according to a statement released to the press. The company also introduced new desktop processors and said it expects to announce battery-friendly quad-core processors for laptop computers next year. The new products come on the heels of …

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 …

Solidere International LTD, a Lebanon-based company, has started work on two development projects in Cairo: one in Sheikh Zayed covering 1.2 million square meters, and the second in Katamya covering 850,000 square meters, according to a statement released to the press. Both projects will create mixed-use complexes of residential, office, leisure, hotel and serviced apartment …

CAIRO: Management consulting firm A.T. Kearney has listed Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Turkey, Morocco, and the United Arab Emirates among the top emerging markets for retail investment attractiveness in their Global Retail Development Index (GRDI). The Middle East and North Africa region appeared most prominently on the list thanks to “strong retail expansion, GDP growth …

CAIRO: The Arab Petroleum Pipelines Co. (Sumed) will establish five new storage tankers at Sidi Kreir, the loading terminal at the northern end of the Sumed pipeline, increasing its storage capacity to 20 million barrels of oil per day. The move is set to transform the area into a hub for international petroleum and crude …

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: The 34th “Amar Ya Masr real estate exhibition witnessed the participation of over 30 real estate and financial companies as well as the highest number of visitors to date, highlighting the boom in Egypt s real estate sector. The three-day exhibition, which ended on Sunday, lured visitors to lavish, often unaffordable, displays. Egyptians working …

CAIRO: The median overnight interbank rate on Egypt s pound was unchanged at 8.752 on Monday, with banks squaring their positions at the end of a two-week central bank reserve ratio period, dealers said. The market is extremely liquid because it s the last day of the reserve period, one dealer said. Rates are typically …

CAIRO: Egypt s main stock indexes rebounded on Sunday from last week s correction, carried by a strong rally in the housing sector and a rise in investment bank EFG-Hermes, traders said. EFG-Hermes climbed 5 percent to reach a year closing high of LE 51 per share after renewed interest in the sector following the …

DUBAI: Dubai-based Emaar Properties, which on Monday missed analysts profit forecasts, said hiring staff was driving up costs as it expands into countries such as India and Egypt. The largest Arab property developer earlier Monday said second-quarter net income rose 1.3 percent to 1.56 billion dirhams ($424.3 million), below analysts forecasts which ranged from 1.79 …

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: Egypt s main stock indexes rebounded on Sunday from last week s correction, carried by a strong rally in the housing sector and a rise in investment bank EFG-Hermes, traders said. EFG-Hermes climbed 5 percent to reach a year closing high of LE 51 per share after renewed interest in the sector following the …

CAIRO: Alcatel-Lucent’s training center in Egypt recently became the 20th certified training center within Alcatel-Lucent’s global education network. Its mission is to deploy learning and qualification solutions that will enable customers and employees in the Middle East and North and West Africa regions to achieve their strategic business objectives. “The concept developed based on the …

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, …

CAIRO: Egypt s two main indexes dipped on Thursday for the second consecutive session as investors harvested the week s earlier gains in blue-chips led by Orascom Construction Industries, traders said. Investors were tempted to collect their money after the record highs witnessed by the market lately. On top of the list of this profit …

ISMAILIA: Egypt s revenues from the Suez Canal climbed to $358.8 million in June 2007 from $318.1 million in the same month a year earlier, the Suez Canal Authority said on Friday. The number of vessels passing through the waterway fell to 1,657 in June from 1,679 in May, but up from 1,534 in June …

NEW YORK: Egypt sold $1.05 billion worth of a five-year bond payable in dollars but denominated in Egyptian pounds, lead managers said on Thursday. The LE 6 billion, 8.75-percent-coupon bond was priced at 99.504 and will pay investors a yield of 8.875 percent, in the lower range of the initial price guidance provided by the …

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 …

CAIRO: Egypt s main indexes dipped on Wednesday after scoring fresh closing highs for three consecutive sessions, led by profit-taking in heavyweight Orascom Construction Industries, traders said. Despite good news coming on OCI s new airport deals, people chose to offload the stock among other market leaders. They got worried that the market reached the …

CAIRO: Egyptian mobile operator Mobinil said on Wednesday it will apply for a third generation mobile phone license following months of hesitation on whether to proceed. Market growth appears to have driven the move after the company said in April that it did not want to burden investors with the high costs of a 3G …

The Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) announced on Monday the dynamic innovations planned for this year’s GITEX Technology Week. “The Egyptian ICT industry has so much to offer to GITEX Technology Week, and we are pleased to be sending a strong delegation to showcase our technological innovations and to identify new business opportunities. This …

The banking sector in Egypt is being redefined by fast paced reform. The privatization of the major state-owned banks allowed internationally renowned names to enter the market, breathing new life into the industry. To be able to compete in the competitive playing field, banks now offer a wider array of banking services than ever before. …

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 …