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Tag: Egypt

  • Suez blockage threatens Vietnam trade with Europe, US

    Suez blockage threatens Vietnam trade with Europe, US

    The Suez Canal blockage caused by the Taiwanese container vessel Ever Given is threatening to delay some of Vietnamese exports and imports.

    The longer it lasts the more losses Vietnamese seafood exporters would suffer since they are the one in charge of shipping seafood to their partners, according to Truong Dinh Hoe, general secretary of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

    “Vietnam and many other countries are short of containers for exports and face surging freight rates. The Suez blockage could make freights rise even higher, putting Vietnam’s seafood export firms in difficulty,” he told local media.

    The blockage would temporarily increase Vietnamese exports’ transportation time to the U.S. and Europe by at least one to two weeks since ships have to go around the southern tip of Africa.

    Maersk, a Danish shipping company, said it has three vessels stuck in the canal and 27 others waiting to enter, with two more expected to reach the site on March 28.

    The company has decided not to wait for Ever Given to be extracted and instead redirected its vessels around the Cape of Good Hope, adding 10-14 days to their itinerary to U.S. ports.

    “In Vietnam, shipping route TP17 from the Cai Mep-Thi Vai Port in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau to the U.S’s east coast, which goes through the Suez Canal, is affected,” a spokesperson for a Vietnamese logistics firm said.

    Multinational electronics companies in Vietnam will be affected if the blockage prolongs since it will delay imports of components.

    Tran Thanh Hai, deputy director of the Agency of Foreign Trade, said the impact of the blockage on Vietnam-Europe trade would depend on the time it takes to dislodge the ship.

    The Ministry of Industry and Trade has instructed Vietnam’s trade office in Egypt to keep it updated on the extrication of the ship.

    On March 23 Ever Given ran aground in one of the world’s busiest waterways. According to the Suez Canal Authority, the ship was unable to keep a straight trajectory due to high winds and a sandstorm that reduced visibility.

    In the morning of March 29, Ever Given was wrenched from the shoreline and set partially afloat again after six days in the ground, according to Inchcape, a British provider of marine services.

  • Airtel and Telecom Egypt partner on global submarine cable systems

    The partnership grants Airtel the right to use fiber pairs of MENA Cable from Egypt to India with access to Saudi Arabia and Oman, and other fiber pairs from Egypt towards Italy. It also extends beyond MENA Cable, where Airtel will get the right to use a fiber pair from Egypt to France on TE North along with capacities on SMW5 and AAE1 cable systems.

    With this, Airtel will be able to further diversify its global network to serve the massive growth in demand for data services, particularly in emerging markets across South Asia, Africa and Middle East, while also benefitting from the favorable economics of Telecom Egypt’s existing wide cable systems network.

    Commenting on the partnership, Ajay Chitkara, Director and CEO, Airtel Business, said, “The partnership with Telecom Egypt underlines our commitment to provide world-class service experience to our customers. The partnership including MENA Cable and TE’s network will be a good addition to our global network portfolio and will provide us with a high quality and diversified new route to Western Europe and the rest of the world. With the explosion of data usage in emerging markets, including India and Africa, this asset will provide us a scalable and diverse high capacity highway to serve our customers. In particular, it will provide impetus to India’s emergence as a major regional internet hub serving customers across SAARC region, with seamless global connectivity.”

    Ahmed El Beheiry, Chief Executive Officer of Telecom Egypt, added: “Telecom Egypt’s global network was built over the years through investments in consortiums as well as private international submarine cable systems. Our reach and position as an international hub with tens of Tbps lit capacity, makes us the partner of choice for Euro-Asian and Euro-African transit traffic. Telecom Egypt signed the agreement with OTMT to acquire MENA Cable with the aim of capitalizing on the growing traffic from India and Saudi Arabia to Europe and to obtain a new gateway to Europe through Italy. We are pleased to be able to sign the MoU with Airtel as well as to be able to bundle MENA’s assets with existing assets of the TE network. We aim to come back to the market with more details on the MoU and its financial impact once the deal is closed.”

    Egypt’s distinctive geographic location on the Red and Mediterranean seas has enabled Telecom Egypt to connect more than 11 cable systems from the East and 13 from the West linked with the Red-Med Corridor consisting of 7 diversified routes across Egypt. Telecom Egypt’s global network was built over the years through investments in international submarine cable systems, namely: TE North, ALETAR, SEA-ME-WE-3, SEA-ME-WE-4, SEA-ME-WE-5, IMEWE, EIG, and AAE-1.

    Airtel’s global network portfolio includes ownership of i2i submarine cable system connecting Chennai to Singapore, consortium ownership of SMW4 submarine cable system connecting Chennai and Mumbai to Singapore and Europe, and new cable system investments like Asia America Gateway (AAG), India Middle East & Western Europe (IMEWE), Unity, EIG (Europe India Gateway) and East Africa Submarine System (EASSy). It also has terrestrial express connectivity to neighboring countries including Nepal, Pakistan, Bhutan, Bangladesh and China.

  • Mercedes-Benz To Start Assembling Cars In Egypt

    Mercedes-Benz To Start Assembling Cars In Egypt

    Mercedes-Benz and the Egyptian government have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to locally assemble the company’s passenger cars in the country. This is the result of successful discussions with the Egyptian government. This planned commitment is set to further improve the market position of Mercedes-Benz Cars in Egypt. The Memorandum of Understanding not only describes a local Mercedes-Benz passenger car assembly, but also contains other potential fields of cooperation. The assembly will be set up by a local business partner. At the same time, Mercedes-Benz Cars emphasises the involvement and know-how of Egyptian suppliers.

    “In building up a local car assembly, we will be able to structure our production network even more flexibly and efficiently and respond even better to the needs of our customers,” says Jorg Burzer, Executive Board member Mercedes-Benz Cars, Production and Supply Chain.

    In view of the long-term market potential, further investments are also conceivable, for example expansion of the dealer network, a logistical hub in the Suez Canal Special Economic Zone and a training centre. Furthermore, the company has offered to make its specialist expertise with respect to modern mobility concepts, e-mobility and electric vehicles, as well as autonomous driving, available.

    With the planned car assembly operation in Egypt, Mercedes-Benz Cars is supporting Egypt as an industrial location. Already now, Mercedes-Benz is securing more than 1,000 direct and indirect jobs in Egypt with its own import and sales organisation, a central spare parts warehouse and numerous authorised retailers and workshops in Cairo, Gizeh, Alexandria and Hurghada. With the new car assembly operation, Mercedes-Benz Cars will create new employment and contribute to better training opportunities with the planned training centre.

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  • H&M sales beat Predicted expectations

    H&M sales beat Predicted expectations

    First-quarter H&M sales have exceeded expectations, with the company improving both profit and margin, proof that the fast-fashion company’s turnaround strategy is working.

    H&M sales rose by 42 per cent in India and 16 per cent in China, in local currencies. The company said  both online and offline performance improved in many markets.

    The global retailer’s pre-tax profit was 1.04 billion Swedish crowns (US$112.25 billion) for the quarter to February 28, less than the 1.26 billion Swedish crowns it posted in the previous corresponding period. But this was well ahead of the 708 million that analysts had been expecting.

    Gross margin was 50.0 per cent, up from 49.9 per cent in the previous corresponding period, while analysts had been anticipating a fall to 49.4 per cent.

    H&M said this was the result of ongoing improvements in buying and logistics, which led to a 1.5 percentage point reduction in the markdowns in relation to sales, compared to the corresponding quarter the previous year.

    “Our ongoing transformation work has contributed to stronger collections with increased full-price sales, lower markdowns and increased market shares,” Karl-Johan Persson, H&M’s CEO, said in a statement accompanying the results.

    H&M has also been working to improve its online offering by launching e-commerce sites in new markets, integrating digital and physical stores and providing faster delivery options. The retailer also said it will shortly launch an upgraded loyalty program, which has 35 million members.

    Today, H&M is available online in 47 markets, and Mexico and Egypt will be added in 2019. It will launch on Myntra and Jabong, India’s largest e-commerce marketplaces, later this year.

    H&M said it plans to add 175  net new stores to its network this year. Most of these stores will open in growing markets, while the number of stores in Europe is expected to reduce by 50.

    “The rapid transformation of fashion retail continues and we can see that our own transformation work is taking us in the right direction, even if many challenges remain and there is still hard work to do,” Persson said.

    “The progress we have made in our strategic focus areas confirms that we are on the right track. Therefore we continue moving forward at full speed and we are optimistic about the future for the H&M group.”

    H&M’s strategic focus areas include:

    • Creating the best customer offering.
    • Fast, efficient flexible product flow in the supply chain, including initiatives within advanced data analytics and AI.
    • Continued investment in the tech foundation, including scalable and robust platforms to enable faster development of new apps and technologies.
    • Digital expansion into new markets.
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  • Aidijuma Colors Group, Hijup, acquire majority stake in United Kingdom’s e-commerce retailer, Haute Elan

    Aidijuma Colors Group, Hijup, acquire majority stake in United Kingdom’s e-commerce retailer, Haute Elan

    Aidijuma Colors Group of Companies — which owns the popular Malaysian ‘Bawal’ hijab range under the Aidijuma label — together with its modest wear e-commerce site Hijup have acquired a majority stake in UK-based modest fashion and e-commerce company Haute Elan ahead of Hijup’s expansion into the UK market.

    Established in 2012, modest fashion brand Aidijuma adopts the creative business model of online merging offline to offer the best possible experience to customers.

    With its omnichannel strategy, Aidjuma is the only brand in Malaysia that offers online shopping and owns 12 retail concept stores nationwide, complemented by 12 Scarf Machine.send.sell.story mobile concept stores to provide a seamless experience for consumers.

    With plans for listing by 2020, the latest venture capital investment for Aidijuma Colors Group is in Haute Elan, which is also the organiser of the London Modest Fashion Week – the UK’s very first modest fashion week — that was held for the first time last year that brought together more than forty designers from countries including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey and -Malaysia.

    Modest fashion has become increasingly popular among millennial Muslim women worldwide who see it as a way to dress stylishly.

    “Modest fashion is a growing trend that offers women options, choices and freedom to express themselves while being fashionable which mass-market retailers and designers are already taking notice of the market’s potential so we are investing in the future by taking a stake in it now. We look forward to build strategic business partnerships around the world to expand this business model for Modest Fashion globally,” said Aidijuma Colors Group Chief Executive Officer and founder, Datin Norjuma Habib Mohamed.

    The latest investment in Haute Elan brings Aidijuma Colors Group’s total venture capital investment amount to date to US$20 million, which includes stakes in Brunei’s event organising company and retailer BIFASH, Singapore e-retailer MODESTyle, Malaysian cosmetic and skincare brands Simplysiti and Zawara, as well as Indonesia’s Hijup.com in which it also controls.

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  • 30 percent of Egyptian coffee from Indonesia

    30 percent of Egyptian coffee from Indonesia

    Indonesia’s Ambassador to Egypt, Helmy Fauzy, said that some 30 percent of the coffee in Egypt comes from Indonesia, which is the leading coffee importer in Egypt.

    “This is the reason we bring potential investors from Egypt to Gorontalo, to meet the coffee suppliers, especially to see Robusta coffee,” said Helmy at the “Indonesia Middle East Update (IMEU) 2016”, held in Gorontalo on Oct 9, 2016.

    He explained that Indonesias relationship with Egypt has always been very close, as there are about 4,500 Indonesian students studying in Egypt.

    According to Helmy, Indonesian products have superior penetration in some markets in Egypt, though the volume remains small, at about 1.42 percent. Conversely, imports from Egypt to Indonesia are just 0.09 percent, but volume continues to increase sharply.

    “In the first half year, the trade volume between the two countries has almost reached one billion US dollars and continues to increase,” he said.

    An official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ridwan Yasin, explains that IMEU is a concrete form of cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Middle East Directorate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in cooperation with local governments.

    “This is a concrete manifestation of cooperation between the foreign ministry and the local government, to improve the economy in this area,” he explained.

    He said he hoped this year that the IMEU could provide great benefits and a real contribution to economic development in Gorontalo province, and cooperation with countries in the Middle East.

    He added that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through Indonesian embassies abroad, never stops scheduling promotions, which provide an opportunity for the region to offer a variety of investments.

    “But the most important thing to keep the investment climate in the area is changing society’s mindset, so they can accept foreigners and work together here, for the mutual benefit of both sides,” he said.

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  • China Telecom said to be interested in Egypt 4G license

    China Telecom said to be interested in Egypt 4G license

    China Telecom has reportedly expressed an interest in expanding into Egypt through the acquisition of a 4G license in the market.

    The operator, along with Saudi Telecom Company, have been in contact with the communications ministry regarding potentially securing licenses in Egypt, a ministry official told.

    But neither operator has yet submitted a formal request, and 4G licenses will only be offered to new entrants if existing players reject the terms of the licenses, the report states.

    Incumbent operators have reportedly been slow to accept the terms offered by the government for 4G licenses. In an example of these terms, Orange’s Egyptian affiliate has been asked to pay 3.54 billion Egyptian pounds ($398.6 million) for a license, and to decide whether to agree by August.

    The fact that international operators are interested in acquiring licenses could increase pressure on the existing entrants to agree to the terms.

    At least some analysts believe that all of Egypt’s existing players will ultimately apply for 4G licenses, which would mean the government would not have sufficient reason to approve the entry of a newcomer. It is therefore uncertain whether China Telecom will be entering the Egyptian market.

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