| Egypt's Foreign Reserves Continue Upward Trend to Reach $44.501 Bn in October Egypt's foreign currency reserves continued its upward trend to reach $44.501 billion at the end of October, slightly increasing from $44.459 in September, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) announced. Egypt's foreign reserves have been steadily increasing since the country signed a $12 billion three-year loan with the International Monetary Fund in 2016 to ease an acute shortage of foreign currency. Last month, the country announced that its external debts have increased by 17.2 percent year on year at the end of June to reach $92.6 billion. In June 2017, Egypt's foreign debt stood at $79 billion. The burden of foreign debt service reached $13.2 billion during the 2017/2018 fiscal year, compared to $7.320 billion in 2016/2017, according to Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) figures. The increase is attributed to higher loans as well as a rise in the exchange rate of foreign currencies against the US dollar, which accounted for a $0.4 billion increase. CBE also said the country's net balance of domestic debts reached EGP 3.1 trillion ($173.4 billion) in June, an increase of EGP 434.4 billion. | | Sisi Suggests Scrapping Wage Increase of Civil Servants to Build extra Classrooms President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi proposed on Monday more austerity measures in Egypt, including the scrapping of an annual salary raise for civil servants this year since the government needs over $7 billion to build new classrooms in Egypt's jam-packed schools. "Shall I say something difficult? Make pay cuts within all the ministries. Shall I say something more difficult? We're not going to give raises this year to employees in Egypt," El-Sisi said on the third day of the World Youth Forum (WYF) conference in the Red Sea resort of Sharm El Sheikh. According to the Egyptian leader, there is "a need to build 250,000 new classrooms, which would cost EGP 130 ($7.3) billion." "That's a big challenge … Tell me what to do. How do I solve this?" he added. Egypt has been implementing tough reforms since it secured a $12 billion IMF loan deal in 2016 as part of an ambitious program to lift an ailing economy and attract foreign investments. Under the IMF deal, the country floated its currency, which halved in value, and gradually cut fuel subsidies and increased prices -- placing millions of Egyptians under financial strain. | | Oil & Gas  Israel Has No capacity to Pump Gas to Egypt as Contracted: Report Israel's domestic pipeline network doesn't have the capacity to carry all the natural gas it has contracted to sell to Egypt, an Israeli report said on Monday. According to Haaretz, Hebrew publication TheMarker said Israel is looking to find a solution to the imminent problem especially that Egypt is expecting to operate the pipeline as early as March. In late September, Israel's Delek Drilling and American company Noble Energy Inc. announced that they, along with the Egyptian East Gas Company, had acquired a 39 percent stake in EMG, an Egyptian company that owns an undersea pipeline running between Egypt and Israel. Last month, CEO of East Gas Company Mohammed Shoeib told Bloomberg that Egypt can begin importing natural gas from Israel under the $5 billion deal as early as March if the gas pipeline is found to be in fit condition. "The critical length of pipeline belonging to Israel Natural Gas Lines -- the company responsible for operating 650 kilometers of pipeline inside Israel -- is currently capable of carrying between two and three billion cubic meters of gas annually," The Marker report said. But under two separate agreements, the Tamar and Leviathan partners, led by Israel's Delek Group and Texas-based Noble Energy, are committed to selling 3.5 BCM annually and under certain conditions could sell more to Egyptian company Dolphinus Holdings. The report suggests a number of options which include sending some gas through another length of the INGL network to the pipeline, which connects to EMG. Others are to widen the existing INGL pipeline, build a second parallel pipeline or build an undersea pipeline. | | Portfolio Investment T-Bills Yield Down for First Time in Three Months Yields on Egypt's treasury bills retreated during last week's auctions, snapping an upturn that lasted for three successive months amid renewed appetite among banks and other institutions for buying into the government debt instruments. Coverage ratio for the T-bills auctions held last week rose to 1.9 from 1.6 times, central market data showed. The finance ministry announced a plan for bond issuance in Asian currencies over the coming period. The issuance, expected in the first quarter of 2019, will be denominated in Japan's Yen and China's Yuan at a value between $ 3-7 billion. The ministry is also considering an EGP-denominated bond issuance on the international markets, with interest to be paid in USD. The recent rise in yields on domestic debt instruments was ascribed by analysts to the partial exit of foreigners from the market, given the volatility in global emerging markets. The finance ministry last Monday accepted bids for its treasury bonds double the required value, lured by the continued decline in yields submitted by investors. The central bank has cancelled a number of bond auctions over the few last weeks as foreign investors shied away from the country's debt amid a global weak appetite for emerging market assets. Egypt's financing needs in the 2018/2019 budget amount to around EGP 714.6 (nearly $40) billion, of which EGP 511.2 billion are secured from local debt instruments, while the remaining amount is obtained from the issuance of bonds and the IMF loan. Meanwhile, foreign holdings in Egypt's government debt instruments have amounted to $17.1 billion since the floatation of the pound in November 2016 until the end of July, which is $23.1 billion lower than their level at the end of March. | | HC Launches New Service for Clients to Invest in Medium-Sized Firms HC Securities and Investment (HC) announced on Monday the launch of a new direct investment service in order for clients to invest in medium-sized companies. The financial institution will invest its capital through its clients and groups of investors in the transaction system, according to an official statement. "We endeavor to not only create a long-term value for our partners and investors but also support the Central Bank of Egypt's initiative in backing successful middle-sized companies," the company's chairman Hussein Shukri said. In its statement, the company revealed that it has appointed Ahmed El-Dessouky, a financial expert who had worked in the Wall Street and has a long history in the finance field, to manage HC's new sector. El-Dessouky, who took up his post at HC on October 15, said that the financial institution's reputation in the market will allow him to explore further unique investment opportunities in different sectors. "We look forward to supporting entrepreneurs as well as further identify and implement growth initiatives that will achieve long-term value for all parties," he commented. | | Furniture Sector Eyes 8% Growth, Narrower Trade Deficit The new strategy of developing Egypt's furniture sector until 2025 targets a growth rate in production to 8 percent annually, up from the current 5-7 percent, said Head of Egyptian Furniture Export Council (EFEC) Ehab Deryas. The strategy, which was set by EFEC, also aims to reduce the sector's imports to less than 40 percent of the final product from 60-70 percent through shifting to the local products. It also seeks to increase the contribution of local industries in the final production to 15-20 percent from 5-10 percent, Deryas noted. The EFEC head also said the value of furniture exports fell by 4 percent during the first eight months of 2018 compared with the same period a year earlier, recording $220 million. Last month, the Industrial Development and Workers Bank of Egypt (IDBE) signed a cooperation protocol with the Damietta Furniture City (DFC) to finance furniture manufacturers and artisans in the new Damietta city. | Public Enterprise Minister Hesham Tawfik Enterprise Minister, Werner International Review Means of Developing Egypt's Textile Industry Public Enterprise Minister Hesham Tawfik had talks on Monday with a delegation of the US-based clothing and textile management consultants Werner International on executive measures to develop companies affiliated to the Cotton and Textile Industries Holding Company. During the meeting, Tawfik listened to a briefing, which was conducted by the delegation, of studies on a comprehensive restructuring of companies affiliated to the state-run textile company, according to a statement issued by the ministry. Tawfik highlighted the importance of developing marketing approaches as well as training staff in order to achieve "the goals of a comprehensive restructuring." The Cotton and Textile Industries Holding Company has been recently suffering from major losses as debts have accumulated to EGP 16.6 billion ($927 million), with the majority of the money being owed to the National Investment Bank (NIB), head of the company Ahmed Mostafa told local media last month. It aims to cut its losses by 34.6 percent in 2019 to EGP 1.7 billion ($94.8 million) as the company undergoes restructuring efforts as part of the cabinet's plans to shrink losses of state-owned companies or dissolve them. According to Mostafa, the company has 65 percent of the market power in the fields of cotton ginning and textile weaving but that it is suffering because of old machinery that has been in use for the past 30 years. | | Delta Sugar Posts 28% Drop in Profits in 9M The Egypt-based Delta Sugar company has reported a 28 percent drop in its profits in the first nine months of 2018 to reach EGP 287.8 (nearly $16.1) million, versus profits of EGP 398.1 million during the year-ago period. The company's sales declined by 20 percent during the same period to stand at EGP 1.5 billion ($84 million), compared to total sales of EGP 1.8 billion in the corresponding period in 2017, according to Delta Sugar's latest financial results released on Monday. Delta Sugar attributed the decline in its profits to a hike in bank interest for the previous year by about EGP 98 ($5.5) million. The company said the increase in bank interest is down to a drop in sales as well as increased overdraft, which reached EGP 1.4 billion ($78.2 million) in 2018 versus EGP 303 ($17) million last year. Meanwhile, Delta Sugar said it is in talks with the supply ministry to sell its existing stock of 220,000 tons. "The company's board of directors will finalize the deal at its next meeting by the end of the first half of November," the company added in a statement. In October, Delta Sugar said it aimed to expand the cultivated area of sugar beet and double the average productivity of beet-based sugar from 17 tons to 40 tons per acre per year, as Egypt attempts to become self-sufficient in sugar production. Egyptians consume around 3.3 million tons of sugar per year, and the country has often faced shortages in the past. It has also been trying to decrease imports and increase exports, to shrink the current account deficit. | | Real Estate 8 Developers Mull Constructing Retail, Administrative Area in 6 October Eight developers are contemplating constructing a retail and administrative area in 6th of October City on the outskirts of Cairo over an area of 50 acres. The land is owned by the eight companies along with the Holding Company for Construction and Development's housing society, El Shams Housing's CEO Mahmoud Maghawry, one of the co-owners, told Amwal AlGhad newspaper. The land's blueprints will comprise schools, hospitals and malls that will serve residents of the northern 6th of October's area, according to Meghawry, who added that the total investments for the area is yet to be decided. | | Hyde Park Seals $55.8 Mn Construction Deals YTD Hyde Park Real Estate Development has sealed construction deals worth EGP 1 billion ($55.8 million) so far this year, said CEO Amin Serag Eddin. Speaking exclusively to Al-Mal newspaper, the top executive added that total contracts for the company's Hyde Park project, which is located in New Cairo, amounted to EGP 4 billion ($223 million). He also said his company targets EGP 1 billion ($55.8 million) from sales in the project's new phase, adding that sales figures had exceeded the previous target by 5 percent. The sale of units to Egyptians working abroad accounted for 20 percent of total sales, according to Serag Eddin. | | FRA Issues Governance Rules for Finance Lease, Factoring Firms The Financial Regulatory Authority's (FRA) Chairman Mohamed Omran on Monday announced executive regulations for finance leases and factoring companies, saying the new rules are aimed at safeguarding and balancing the interests of the parties involved in the activities of both fields. The regulations will also ensure an effective supervision of the performance of companies undertaking such activities, said Omran. These regulations set boundaries for finance leases and services provided by factoring entities, including collection of dues. They also lay down the conditions that must be met in debts and the disclosure rules for factored rights, as well as transfer of rights and methods of notification, according to Omran. Omran had earlier said the volume of financial leasing at the end of 2017 reached EGP 28.6 billion, up from EGP 4.3 billion ($240 million) at the end of 2013. In August, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi ratified the leasing and factoring act that regulates leasing and factoring as non-banking financial tools that are subject to oversight by the market regulator. | | Electro Cable Egypt Turns Profit in 9M to Atone for Last Year's Losses Electro Cable Egypt posted an EGP 87.8 million ($4.9 million) in net profit for the first nine months of 2018, against a net loss of EGP 12.2 million incurred in the same period a year ago. The company's consolidated sales amounted to EGP 1.2 billion ($67 million) in the nine-month period, up from EGP 750.9 million, according to the company's filing to Cairo bourse. The net profit attributable to shareholders amounted to EGP 47.9 million in the third quarter, versus EGP 14.2 million in losses recorded a year ago. The cable producer also turned profitable in the first quarter of 2018, generating EGP 10.4 million compared to a net loss of EGP 22.5 million in the corresponding period in 2017. Chairman Mohamed Zakariyah Mohei earlier said his company had successfully regained its vigor and recovered from the fallout of the Egyptian pound floatation that pushed production costs to record levels. | | Deals Orascom Construction Unveils New Contracts Worth $520 Mn Orascom Construction Ltd announced Monday that it had added new contracts worth as much as $520 million to its backlog in the third quarter of 2018. "Egypt accounted for approximately 60% of new awards while the US represented the remaining value," Orascom said in a statement. Orascom also said the value of its backlog of projects stood at $4.1 billion on September 30. It also revealed that Belgium's BESIX, which is 50 percent owned by Orascom, added around 380 million euros in new projects during the third quarter of 2018, bringing the total of new contracts to 1.9 billion euros and backlog to 3.2 billion euros at the end of the third quarter. Orascom announced in July it had completed its renovation of the Al Alamein Hotel, delivering it to Emaar Hospitality Group after eight months of work. Earlier in 2018, the company was awarded, as part of a consortium with Toyota, a 20-year power production license for the 250 MW wind farm in the Gulf of Suez. | | Stock Market EGX Closes With Slight Increase Following Weeks of Losses The Egyptian Stock Exchange's benchmark index EGX30 closed on Monday with a slight increase of 0.49 percent at 13,226 points as foreigners started to timidly purchase stocks again following weeks of losses. A global trend saw foreign investors exit emerging markets for more stable and profitable markets in the last few weeks, with the Egyptian stock index tumbling 3.8 percent in September for its biggest drop since mid-2016. On Monday, the midcap index EGX70 climbed by 0.01 percent at 682 points. The broader index EGX100 climbed by 0.02 percent at 1711 points. The equal weights EGX50 rose 0.9 percent at 2121 points, and the EGX20 capped index rose 0.16 percent at 12720 points. Last month, the government announced that the public offering of 4.5 percent of the shares of state-owned Eastern Tobacco Company, which was scheduled for the end of October, was put on hold after an overall weak performance in the emerging markets. The public sector was not the only one affected by the weak market performance, as the IPO of finance solutions company Sarwa Capital in early October saw its shares drop 11.4 percent on its debut day. "The sharp drop is due to what is happening in emerging markets and the exit of foreigners from them", Radwa Suweifi, head of research at investment bank Pharos, told Reuters a few weeks ago. "Is there sufficient liquidity in the market to accommodate the expected offerings, whether governmental or private? We may see postponements of some of the offerings until the liquidity and psychological state of clients improve." | | Raya Holding's Stock Jumps Another 10% With no Purchase Requests The shares of Raya Holding for Financial Investment increased by10 percent on Monday for the second consecutive day to reach EGP 7.84 ($0.44) amid no purchase requests, with investors and the company's owner anticipating a decision from the financial regulator before deciding their next step. The Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) is set to look into an appeal from Raya CEO Medhat Khalil against its decision to sell some of the company's shares or oblige him to make an offer to buy back its outstanding shares, estimated at EGP 500 ($28) million, after he and his family had exceeded the permitted ownership limits. Khalil, whose deadline expires on November 27, stated in a bourse filing that it is "unprecedented that a brother-in-law, a second-degree relative, is considered by the FSA as a first-degree relative," saying the FSA should have informed all companies of any new regulation, if there is any. Khalil's brother-in-law owns 10 percent of the company's shares while 32 percent is owned by Khalil, his wife and sons. This makes the total shares owned by the family 42 percent, which is above the permitted 33 percent. Khalil said he will make up his mind on whether to sell some of his family's shares or submit a mandatory tender offer (MTO) to acquire 100 percent of the company when the FSA responds to his complaint, which also includes a request to extend the November 27 deadline for one month. | | Sisi Recommends Forming National Committee to Design Social Media Strategy President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has recommended forming a national research committee to set out a strategy to deal with social networking sites but insisted that any attempts to shut them down will not be successful. "Social media outlets must be used positively and developed countries must deal with social media challenges in a way that does not affect the security and stability of other countries," El-Sisi said as he addressed a panel entitled "Social Media: Saving or Enslaving Users" on Monday -- the second day of the World Youth Forum (WYF). El-Sisi underlined the importance of making use of the positives of social media and overcoming its disadvantages, citing the Arab Spring protests as an example of how it could have negative repercussions on entire countries. "Rumors have always existed in the world, but means of spreading rumors have now developed," he added. "In 2010, I delivered a speech, saying that the development of social media will have a dangerous effect on Egypt and the Arab region in general and that turned out to be true later; the country was not ready to face its dangers." Egypt's famous 2011 protests that eventually unseated president Hosni Mubarak were organized by a Facebook page, with the social networking website playing a key role in mobilization, empowerment, shaping opinions and influencing change. According to a report released last year by the Dubai School of Government's Governance and Innovation Program, Egypt is the top Arab country in terms of Facebook users with 35 million accounts. In September, El-Sisi ratified a law whereby social media accounts and blogs with more than 5,000 followers on platforms such as Twitter and Facebook will be classed as media outlets -- which makes them subject to prosecution for publishing false news. | | Region Raya Trade to Distribute Two Cellphone Brands in Nigeria Raya Trade Company, a subsidiary of Raya Holding for Financial Investments, is set to sell two brands of cellphones in the Nigerian market in December -- Chinese Lenovo and Indian Lava phones. "The company has been contracted as an agent for the two mobile manufacturers in Nigeria and will sell their phones at prices ranging from $50 to $100," the Raya Trade's CEO Bassem Megahed told Al-Mal newspaper. He added that his company plans to acquire five percent of the market share of Lava sales in Nigeria, which are estimated at $10 million monthly. They are still in talks with Lenovo on the targeted sales. The company has been operating in Nigeria's capital Lagos for 11 years and has four retail stores and 13 client service centers, Megahed revealed, adding that "the African markets have promising growth rates." Raya is looking to expand in three new areas outside Lagos in the near future. | Egyptian weightlifting star Mohamed Ihab Egypt's Weightlifter Ihab Sets Record After Winning Gold Medal at World Championship Egyptian weightlifting star Mohamed Ihab set a record yesterday after clinching the gold medal at the World Championship in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan. Ihab came on top in the snatch of the men's 81kg event after lifting 173 kg, bettering the previous world record of 170 kg. He also won the bronze medal in the clean and jerk with 200 kg and narrowly missed out on another gold medal in the total result, with China's Lu Xiaojun beating him with a 1 kg difference. Ihab, Egypt's most successful weightlifter of all time, won three gold medals at the previous World Championship in the United States last year as the country ended a 66-year drought in the competition. He also gave Egypt a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. | | Ahly Striker Azaro Suspended for African Champions League Final Ahly will miss key striker Walid Azaro in the anticipated Champions League final second-leg against Tunisia's Esperance on Friday after he was suspended for two matches by African governing body CAF. CAF said in a statement late yesterday that Azaro was given the two-match ban after it viewed "the footage related to the player," without specifying the exact reason for the surprising sanction. The Moroccan, who won two controversial penalties as Ahly defeated Esperance 3-1 in last week's first leg in Alexandria, was caught on cameras ripping off his shirt after his team were awarded one of the two spot kicks in the second half. He apparently did so to convince Algerian referee Mehdi Abid Charef that he was tugged and pushed by his challenger as they tussled for a long ball right before the official pointed to the spot. Azaro has been one of Ahly's key players since joining from Morocco's Difaa El Jadida in the summer of 2017. He was instrumental in steering them to the Egyptian Premier League title last season, finishing as the competition's top scorer with 18 goals. | | Egypt Spends $279 Mn Annually on Disabled People: Minister The cash subsidy provided for 1.1 million persons with disabilities across the country amounts to EGP 5 billion ($279 million) annually, said Minister of Social Solidarity Ghada Waly. "There is a political will to improve the services provided for those with disabilities," she added. The government is proceeding with the employment of more than 1182 persons with special needs, in partnership with 20 private companies. Waly also said the government has paid EGP 9.9 million ($552,000) to support 339 projects serving 278,000 persons with disabilities. | | International Egypt Puts Off Brazil Visit Over President-Elect's Pledge to Move Embassy to Jerusalem: Report Brazil's foreign ministry said that Egypt has postponed a visit by its top diplomat to Cairo, with two diplomatic sources telling Reuters yesterday that the move is due to the president-elect's promise to relocate Brazil's embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. Aloysio Nunes Ferreira was supposed to fly to Cairo for a visit from November 8-11, during which he was set to meet with President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. "But the foreign ministry sources, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, said no new date has been proposed, signaling Egypt's discontent with Jair Bolsonaro's [Brazil's president-elect] proposal," according to Reuters. Bolsonaro's pledge to relocate Brazil's embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem follows a similar move by US President Donald Trump in May after he recognized the city as the capital of Israel. Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state. El-Sisi said in May that the US Embassy's relocation from Israel to Jerusalem will cause "some instability" in the region. | Lebanon's tourism minister Region Lebanese Tourism Minister Apologizes for Describing Egypt as 'Dirty Place' Lebanon's tourism minister has apologized for the disparaging remarks he made about Egypt, stating that he never described the country as "one of the dirtiest places in the world" as he was quoted by media reports. In a phone-in with Egyptian television show Sada El-Balad (The Country's Echo), Avedis Guidanian said that he did not mean to describe Egypt as a dirty country, highlighting that no Lebanese person, including officials, can label the country as such. "I was only referring to the overcrowding and the difficult social situation in Egypt and I was also comparing between Egyptian and Lebanese media," he said. "Egypt is capable of solving its problems, but I did not say Egypt is a dirty country. I apologize because I do not want to hurt the feelings of our neighboring country." Guidanian referred to Egypt as a "dirty place" while blaming negative media reports on Lebanon's lackluster tourism industry in an interview with Lebanon's The Daily Star newspaper. "I mean look at Egypt is there a place dirtier than it? People are louder than us, there is more traffic than here -- people live in graves, OK? But there is tourism because they know how to sell that country," he said. | | Region Turkish Inflation Hits 15-Year High of About 25% Turkey's annual inflation surged to 25.2 percent in October, hitting its highest in 15 years and underlining the impact of a debilitating currency crisis on its economy, official data showed on Monday. Month on month, consumer prices jumped 2.67 percent in October, the Turkish Statistical Institute data showed indicated -- higher than the 2 percent forecast in a Reuters poll. Year on year, producer prices rose 45.01 percent and core inflation 24.34 percent. Data showed that the surge in inflation was driven by a 12.74 percent month on month jump in clothing and shoe prices, in addition to a 4.15 percent increase in housing prices. The inflation, which Finance Minister Berat Albayrak predicted had now peaked, has been stoked by a slide of the lira, which edged down to 5.44 against the USD from 5.43 beforehand and has consequently led the government to cut its growth forecasts. Last month, the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) left its benchmark interest rate unaltered following a rise in September as tensions with the US eased. However, the impact of the lira's steep drop on the economy is still being felt with key indicators, including consumer and economic confidence falling to low levels and the government slashing its growth forecasts for the forthcoming three years. | | Saudi Arabia Launches Project to Build Its First Nuclear Research Reactor Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman launched on Monday a project to build the gulf country's first nuclear research reactor. Bin Salman also launched six other strategic projects in the fields of renewable energy, water desalination, genetic medicine and the aircraft industry during his visit to King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST). Earlier this year, the oil-rich kingdom said it needs nuclear power to move away from burning crude oil to generate electricity and to diversify its economy. It has since been in talks with a number of countries, including the United States, to reach agreements to transfer the nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia. | | Oil & Gas Trump Considers Imposing 'Gradual' Sanctions on Iran to Avoid Shocking Energy Markets US President Donald Trump said Monday that he wants to gradually impose sanctions on Iran's oil, citing concerns about shocking energy markets and causing global price spikes. Speaking on the same day that US sanctions were re-imposed on Iran, Trump said: ''On oil we want to go a little bit slower because I don't want to drive [up] the oil prices in the world." "This has nothing to do with Iran ... I could get the Iran oil down to zero immediately but it would cause a shock to the market. I don't want to lift oil prices.'' Also on Monday, US Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook told reporters sanctions have already cost Iran billions of dollars in oil revenue since May when Trump pulled out of the nuclear deal, Reuters reported. ''Our oil sanctions have taken off 1 million barrels of Iranian oil off the market, and that alone has reduced the regime's revenues by more than $2 billion,'' he said. The US restored sanctions on Iran but granted temporary waivers to eight countries, allowing them to keep buying oil from the Islamic Republic -- namely India, China, Japan, Italy, Greece, South Korea, Taiwan and Turkey. Oil markets have been anticipating the sanctions for months. Prices have been under pressure as major producers, including Saudi Arabia and Russia, have ramped up output to near-record levels. | |
