No plans to privatize railroads; $1 billion transport holding company established CAIRO: Minister of Transport Mohamed Mansour says the planned LE 8.5 billion upgrades to the country s 100-year-old railway system are set to begin in October and continue for 24 months. The minister s remarks at a German-Arab Chamber of Industry and Commerce luncheon …

CAIRO: Egyptian steel company Attaka has won a deal valued at LE 1.1 billion ($192 million) to buy the state s 82 percent stake in Suez Steel, state news agency MENA said on Tuesday. MENA said that 800 million of the LE 1.1 billion to be paid for Suez Steel would go toward the company …

MUMBAI: Indian consumer goods maker Marico Ltd. said on Wednesday it had bought Fiancee, a hair care brand owned by Egypt s Ready Group, for an undisclosed sum. The Fiancee range includes hair creams and gels, and has a fifth of the total market, Marico said. The Egyptian haircare market is worth about 1.7 billion …

Rachid back from successful China trip; Fahmy says OPEC working to stabilize oil prices CAIRO: Egypt is set to receive $700 million in Chinese investments over the next 18 months, including at least $300 million for a new aluminum factory in Ismailia, Minister of Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamed Rachid said on the closing day …

RAFAH: A new link connecting the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah to the Egyptian power grid opened Monday as the Palestinians strive to end their dependence on Israel. The 1.5 km-long five megawatt power line connects the Egyptian and Palestinian sides of the divided town, the director of Egypt s Canal Company for Electricity …

Prospects increase for wining international calls license, says Raya official CAIRO: Raya Holdings announced its acceptance of the principle of Vodafone Egypt acquiring 51 percent of Raya Telecommunications’ shares for LE 104 million yesterday, after the board of directors gave it the green light on Monday. Officials said the contract would be finalized within the …

Ghali suggests more customs cuts; Moheiddin to accelerate privatization CAIRO: Minister of Finance Youssef Boutros Ghali announced the economy has achieved 6.9 percent growth rate, adding he expects the number to reach 7.4 percent by year s end with more reforms in the pipeline, possibly including more customs cuts. The minister s remarks came at …

CAIRO: The Capital Market Authority has licensed another four brokerage firms to provide online trading services in the Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchanges (CASE), according to CMA head Hany Sarie El Din. In special remarks to NOOZZ, Sarie El Din said the companies include Delta, CIBC, EFG-Hermes and Nile One Brokers. Earlier in July, the …

CAIRO: The median overnight interbank rate on the pound fell to 8.075 percent on Monday from 8.257 on Sunday at the end of the two-week period for calculating bank reserves, bankers said. Some banks even dealt overnight money at 8 percent, the minimum level maintained by the central bank, which offers to take overnight deposits …

CAIRO: Stock indexes rose 0.8 percent in light trade on Monday despite a lack of market-moving news from a big investment conference attended by the key economic ministers. Brokers said they were taken by surprise when the market rebounded from an initial slump driven by falls in the prices of London-listed GDRs. We were looking …

CAIRO: The median overnight interbank rate on the pound fell to 8.2 percent on Sunday from 8.579 percent on Thursday in the absence of central bank auctions, traders said. Rates also fell because the two-week period for calculating bank reserves ends on Monday, they added. Rates usually fall in the last few days of the …

Bank executive says Egyptian financial sector remains attractive despite challenges CAIRO: The entrance of Lebanon s BLOM Bank into the Egyptian market at the end of 2005 could not have been more discreet. But, looking back, perhaps it was for the best. While Egypt was preparing for its first presidential elections and dealing with the …

CAIRO: The consortium of who s who in Egypt s financial affairs will all be found at the 11th annual Euromoney Egypt Conference opening tonight at the Semiramis InterContinental in Cairo. The 2-day conference attempts to bolster the host country s GDP and investments by targeting both business leaders and decision makers in a series …

CAIRO: Stocks slipped in low-volume trade on Sunday and brokers said investors would be watching a big investment conference in Cairo this week for clues to the future of the economy. The main indexes fell between 0.4 and 0.6 percent but volume was well below average at LE 461 million ($80.3 million). Appetite is very …

BEIJING: Egypt is reaching out to China to help develop a range of heavy industries as part of a rapid blossoming of trade and investment ties, Trade and Industry Minister Rachid Mohamed Rachid said on Sunday. He told a meeting of the World Economic Forum that he expected China to overtake the United States and …

Privatization of Biscomisr has led to product improvement CAIRO: The Egyptian company for foods, Biscomisr, which has recently undergone full privatization, is ready to launch new products and expand on its exports after it has reclaimed its old fame, says Samir Sabet, chairman and managing director. “New products are, and will be, formulated but the …

CAIRO: Amr El-Abd, the young chairman of the Alexandria-based Entrepreneurs Business Forum, has big plans. Only a year old, EBF is organizing an ambitious nation-wide business plan competition which wraps up in November. The competition, and the organization itself, are the first of their kind in Egypt, and El-Abd is both ambitious and optimistic about …

Annual Doing Business report disappoints Egypt; LNG prices to increase and millions to stop Nile dumping CAIRO: Egypt ranks among bottom 10 countries in ease of doing business According to the annual Business Report 2007: How to Reform released Wednesday, Egypt ranks 165 out of 175 countries when it comes to the ease of doing …

Concord Group sees much potential in Egyptian market CAIRO: Continuous government efforts to boost the economy are paying off, it seems. According to Laura Osman, portfolio manager of the Concord Group’s international Egyptian public equity funds and a member of its investment committee, numbers from the latest fiscal year show an outstanding improvement and a …

Reuters CAIRO: Egypt aims to boost its oil and gas output by more than 40 percent in the next five years, the country s oil minister said on Wednesday. In the oil and gas sector, we are planning to increase our production to 100 million tons (a year) in the next five years, compared to …

The Capital Market Authority (CMA) will introduce new amendments related to mutual fund activities into the executive regulations of the capital market law within the next two weeks. The new amendments are due to be enforced by the end of the year after being presented to market participants for discussion and their approval by the …

Industry officials expect production to reach 2 million chickens per day by end of year CAIRO: Egyptian poultry producers are crediting an increase in production of chickens, not the recent reports of new cases of the Avian Flu Virus among birds, with the continuous decline in poultry prices for consumers. The live chicken per-kilo price …

NTRA says company never obtained permission to offer technology CAIRO: Mobinil has agreed to suspend using Enhanced Data for GSM Evolution (EDGE) technology until its dispute with the National Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (NTRA) is resolved, the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MCIT) announced yesterday. The announcement followed Tuesday s meeting between Mobinil Chairman Naguib …

Trial Network to Offer High-Speed Wireless Data Connectivity to Egypt s Schools CAIRO: Egyptian Ministers of Communications and IT and Education Attended the Kickoff of the CDMA2000 1xEV-DO Technology and WiFi Network Trial Deployment The Egyptian Minister of Communications and Information Technology and Minister of Education, Lucent Technologies (NYSE:LU), and TeleTech today announced plans to …

WASHINGTON/ROME/KRASNODAR: Egypt has achieved record rice yields with varieties that included hybrids developed locally under an FAO-led project. The world s highest national average rice yield in 2005 was 3.8 metric tons per acre from Egypt, the Executive Secretary of the International Rice Commission, Mr. Nguu Nguyen, told an international scientific conference on sustainable rice …

CAIRO: Egyptian stocks fell on Wednesday after retail investors sold on technicals, but bigger stocks were supported by foreigners and institutions trading on fundamentals, traders said. There s no fundamental news, just a technical reason… Yesterday, the 6,185 points level, if broken on the downside is a sign to sell, a trader who declined to …

CAIRO: In a step to explore the opportunities and synergies between both companies, Vodafone Egypt (VFE) and Raya Holdings (Raya) announced today Raya’s acceptance, in principle, of VFE’s offer to acquire 51% of Raya Telecommunication’s shares for 104 MLE. (One Hundred and four million Egyptian Pounds).Both companies have entered into an exclusive negotiation to finalize …

EFG to use money for regional expansion, e-trading network CAIRO: EFG Hermes shareholders approved on Sunday Abraaj Capital s offer to purchase 97 million shares, representing a 25 percent stake, at LE 30 per share. Upon finalization, Abraaj will hold two board seats and become the largest single shareholder in EFG. The approval came a …

BANJA LUKA, Bosnia: Eleven firms, including France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom-owned Magyar Telekom, have shown interest in the sale of Bosnia s Telekom Srpske, the government said on Tuesday. These and five other firms, including Egypt s Orascom, are yet to buy the tender documentation enabling them to bid by Oct. 4 for a 65 …

Trade with China lags far behind EU and US CAIRO: An Egyptian business delegation, headed by Minister of Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamed Rachid, began a week-long visit to China yesterday seeking to attract more Chinese investment to the country and increase bilateral trade. In 2005, total trade reached just over $1 billion (LE 5.75 …